Sick thug: Give me £2k or I’ll firebomb your home
Online threat after residents of flats flee as two-week violence spree continues
A SINISTER thug is demanding thousands of pounds to stop him torching homes in a town hit by a series of firebomb attacks.
A sick Instagram account with the name Burning soon 2020 emerged online yesterday morning after the most recent attack.
It came after residents told how they fled from their homes following the latest firebomb incident in Greenock.
A flat in Kincaid Court was gutted when it was torched at about 10pm on Monday. It was empty at the time of the fire and no one was injured.
It is the fifth fire-related attack in the town in two weeks and police were last night treating it as deliberate.
Detectives believe the latest attack is linked to the other incidents which are said to have been sparked by a gangland feud that has left one man dead.
The Instagram account began by posting video clips of the Kincaid Court fire but went on to post a series of chilling images in Ins t a g r am Stories asking for cash to prevent other properties in the town being targeted.
The photos of homes, which the Daily Record has chosen not to share, were captioned: “2k call off fee, you know why. Try me, I’d rather you call ma bluff, but am a man of ma word” and “Nice home. 2k to call off.”
The captions also referenced a “rat and his jail pal”, thought to be a reference to the gangland boss behind bars who was reported to have ordered the first firebomb attack in the town’s Union Street.
The @burning2020 account’s main name is GNOCKS FINEST and carries the strapline: “The maggots just need to stay in their place and innocent people wouldn’t be at risk over their jealousy, word on the street.”
Footage from Monday’s blaze showed flames shooting from the window of the ground floor flat. Eight families, including young children, were evacuated from their homes in the block.
It is believed a thug had failed to set fire to the flat 10 minutes earlier but succeeded when they returned to fling a petrol bomb through the window.
Images of the aftermath show the outside of the building charred and blackened by smoke.
Neighbours told the Record they were taken from their homes by the emergency services.
One said: “We are all in shock and shaken up by what has happened.”
A second said: “It’s absolutely insane what’s happened. You can imagine how you’d feel if this happened to you.”
Police are seeking more information on a blue vehicle, possibly a BMW, seen in the area at around the time of the fire.
Detective Superintendent Gerry McBride said: “I would like to reiterate that this behaviour will not be tolerated.
“This was a targeted attack which could have resulted in serious injury and we will do everything in our power to find those responsible.
“I am pleading to those in the community who might have information to please come forward and tell us what you know.”
A source told the Daily Record last week that a war had erupted after a jailed gangland boss ordered a hit on the home of a rival in the town.
George Mi l ler, 46, was allegedly paid £500 to carry out the petrol bomb attack but it led to his own death. Horrific CCTV footage of the incident emerged the following day.
Our contact said the incidents are linked to a year- long gangland feud between the con and another man that started over a drug debt.
In another attack two days later, a woman and nineyear-old girl were targeted in a fire bomb attack in Wellington Street.