Fireworks used to set shop on fire
A convenience store’s front window has been smashed and lit fireworks thrown into the business in a brazen arson attack on Monday morning.
The attack on the Collingwood convenience store in Melbourne’s inner north is the latest in a spate of fire bombing attacks throughout the city.
A group of offenders attacked the Wellington St store about 3am before fleeing the scene in a dark coloured ute.
A Fire Rescue Victoria spokesperson said the shop was empty at the time of the attack and no injuries were reported.
Yarra Crime Investigation Unit detectives are investigating the fire along with the other dozens of convenience and tobacco stores that have been attacked this year.
The arson attacks are believed to be part of a gang war over the control of the state’s illegal tobacco trade.
Though the majority of the fire bombings have been confined to the Melbourne area, there have also been targeted attacks in rural centres Wangaratta, Wodonga and Ballarat.
The Lunar Task Force was recently created by Victoria Police to combat the illegal tobacco trade, with Melbourne homes and businesses raided.
Anyone with information regarding the Collingwood fire or who may have witnessed anything is being urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
