Police have released CCTV vision of two men firebombing the Docklands restaurant belonging to underworld boss Fadi Haddara.
No one was hurt, but New Quay restaurant Karizma was destroyed in the arson attack about 2am on November 20 – the second time the venue was targeted in three days.
Company records show the restaurant is owned by Fadi Haddara, a prominent crime figure who has been linked to wide-scale drug trafficking, illicit tobacco importations and violence for more than a decade.
Victoria Police believe the fire is linked to more than 30 arson attacks across the state over the past eight months as organised crime gangs feud over control of the lucrative illicit tobacco trade.
Detectives from Taskforce Lunar – the dedicated unit set up to tackle violence over illicit tobacco – are looking for two men who were clad head-to-toe in black clothing as they set the Docklands restaurant alight.
In the footage, the pair can be seen lugging jerry cans and smashing the restaurant’s glass windows before pouring accelerant inside. One man then set the trail of accelerant alight from outside, engulfing the business, before they both sprinted away.
The front of the Karizma restaurant in Docklands, owned by Fadi Haddara (right), the morning after the arson attack (left).Credit: The Age
Taskforce Lunar Detective Inspector Graham Banks told reporters on Tuesday it was “probable” that one man was injured when the fire erupted.
The attack was over within minutes.
Emergency services were first called to the restaurant on November 18, when a first suspected arson attack left the business with significant smoke and water damage. Sixty people were evacuated from apartments upstairs.
“It is only sheer luck on both these occasions that none of the people living in the apartments above this restaurant were killed, or their homes completely destroyed,” Banks said.
“These incidents are utterly reckless and show a complete disregard for life or property.”
Banks said police pressure on two gangs warring for control of the illicit tobacco trade – plus associated outlaw motorcycle gangs – had brought about a slowdown in the spate of tobacco firebombings.
Fireworks were thrown into a convenience store on Wellington Street in Collingwood in a brazen arson attack early Monday, but Banks said it wasn’t linked to the tobacco wars.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
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