20-year-old man charged over series of shop fires, ram-raids in latest tobacco war crackdown
A 20-year-old man has been arrested over numerous tobacco shop fires this month at Melton, Glenroy and Wonthaggi. It comes as a supermarket was firebombed for the second time this morning.
Victoria
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A man has been charged over a series of tobacco shop fires across Melbourne and in country Victoria.
Detectives from Taskforce Lunar arrested the 20-year-old Endeavour Hills over blazes this month at Melton, Glenroy and Wonthaggi.
He has been charged with:
– The August 11 arson of a tobacco store on High St in Melton in which a stolen Audi was rammed through the front and set alight at 3.25am.
– The firebombing of a tobacconist on Belair Ave in Glenroy last Saturday in which a van was driven into the building and set alight at 4.45am
– A ram-raid and arson on a McBride Ave, Wonthaggi, tobacco store at 3am on Monday in which a Mazda 3 was torched.
The arrested man faces five counts of criminal damage by fire, three counts of car theft and one of burglary.
He will face Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on November 14.
Detective Insp. Graham Banks of the Lunar Taskforce said the combined damage bill would run into millions of dollars.
“The reckless nature of these fires poses a significant risk to the life and property of innocent parties and that is completely unacceptable. While we have arrested a number of people already, we will relentlessly keep working our way up until we get all the way to the top of these organised crime groups,” Insp. Banks said.
The charges came as an international supermarket in Melbourne’s southwest was firebombed for the second time in three months, with suspected links to the illicit tobacco war raging through the state.
Emergency services were called to Barakat International Goods in Hoppers Crossing just before 5am on Thursday morning, where a car had been crashed into the grocer’s roller door.
An FRV spokesperson said the incident was being treated as suspicious and had been handed over to Victoria Police.
“Firefighters arrived on scene within six minutes to find a car into a roller door that was well alight,” they said.
“Crews remain at the scene and are currently ventilating the building. Ambulance Victoria was also on scene.
“A community warning was issued for smoke in the area.”
The supermarket was last targeted on June 11 — confirmed by Victoria Police as a “targeted attack” — when a passer-by was able to extinguish the flames before emergency services arrived.
The firebombing is the latest instalment in nearly 80 tobacco shop attacks, with major syndicates continuing to fight for control in Victoria
Exiled crime boss Kazem Hamad has been unrelenting in his alleged attempts to eliminate western suburbs tobacco king Fadi Haddara, who ran the illicit trade largely unopposed for years.
A Victoria Police spokesperson said the investigation was ongoing and anyone with information or anyone who may have witnessed any suspicious activity in the area is urged to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at www.crimestoppers.com.au
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