Police probe suspicious fire at historic home on Canterbury’s ‘Golden Mile’
A fire that destroyed a 118-year-old heritage-listed Canterbury home was the work of an arsonist, police believe, as they seek the owner of a ute seen at the property.
Police & Courts
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A fire which destroyed a historic $6m Canterbury home was the work of an arsonist, police believe.
The 118-year-old heritage-listed Shenley Croft on Mangarra Rd went up in flames on December 9 in what police now suspect was a suspicious fire.
A criminal investigation has been launched into the destruction of the vacant single-storey timber home on Canterbury’s “Golden Mile”.
It was set alight at 2am and could not be saved by firefighters.
The facade of the property remains visible but the structure behind was wrecked by the intense fire.
Investigators say a white ute was seen at the property a day before the inferno broke out, and they are trying to find its owner.
“The details of that white utility are unknown and the reason for its visit to the property also remains unknown,” a Victoria Police statement said.
Shenley Croft was built in 1905 and designed by eminent architect John Edmund Burke.
One veteran eastern suburbs real estate agent told the Herald Sun the property would now be worth in the order of $6m.
The owners last year were given permission for partial demolition and restoration works that were at one point slated to cost about $1.5m.
There were proposed plans to build two new dwellings on the 1320sq m block.
The “historic and aesthetic” heritage-listed house was most recently sold in 2019 for $3.1m, when the property hit the market for the first time in 60 years.
Its “Edwardian” style, which included dark stained cladding and a highly pitched roof, were preserved since its construction until the blaze tore through the house last month.
A ballroom accompanied three bedrooms on the ground floor of the home and a cellar sat underneath, while a fourth bedroom was located on the first floor.
Detectives from Boroondara CIU have appealed for witnesses and want to hear from anyone with relevant dashcam or CCTV footage of comings and goings prior to the fire.
Anyone with information can call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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