GANG WAR FEAR ON FIRE BOMB HORROR
‘Feud’ killed three children
A GANG feud is feared to be behind an arson attack that killed three kids.
The killer is thought to have lobbed three petrol bombs into their house, including one down the chimney. And the attack came weeks after yobs believed to be from a gang smashed the windows of the home. Emergency services then ordered security measures and firefighters put a device on the letter box to stop ® petrol being poured inside. Police were again called to the house three hours before the fatal fire on Monday after a wheelie bin was set alight outside.
Five people are being questioned on suspicion of murdering Demi Pearson, 14, her eight-year-old brother Brandon and sister Lacie, seven. A 24-year-old man is being questioned on suspicion of assisting an offender.
A 23-year-old man was arrested just 300 yards from the crime scene, where a crowd yelled while police put him in handcuffs. As he was taken away in Walkden, Salford, one man screamed: “I hope you die, you b ***** d.” The children’s mother, Michelle Pearson, was last night in a serious condition in hospital and had still not been told of their deaths. A fourth sibling, three-year-old Lia, was critically ill.
One neighbour said: “They’ve all been at each other for ages now. It’s just got worse.”
Drew Povey, head of Harrop Fold School, where Demi was a pupil, said: “We’re devastated by the loss of precious life that our community has suffered. The spirit of Salford will not be crushed.”