STORE BLAST KILLERS £300k COMPO SCAM
THREE men killed five people by blowing up a shop in a £300,000 insurance scam.
Arkan Ali, Hawkar Hassan and shopkeeper Aram Kurd used “many, many litres of petrol” in an arson attack.
When the fuel ignited, it caused a “bomb-like” blast, destroying the store and a flat above.
Mary Ragoobeer, 46, her sons Shane, 18, and Sean, 17, and Shane’s 18-year-old girlfriend Leah Reek, died from the explosion at the Polish supermarket in Leicester.
A jury was told the trio left shop worker Viktorija Ijevleva,
22, to die in the building because she was aware of an insurance policy they had taken out less than three weeks earlier.
Ali, 38, Hassan, 33, and Kurd,
34, had denied murder but were found guilty at Leicester Crown Court, which heard they intended “to profit from loss of stock, contents and future loss of business from the shop”.
Around 26 litres of petrol were used to start the fire in the basement of the store, triggering a massive blast on February 25.
CCTV and traffic camera footage showed people fleeing from a nearby takeaway moments after rubble was thrown into the busy roadway.
After the explosion, Kurd gave interviews to the media in an attempt to cover his tracks.
Det Chief Insp Michelle Keen said the trio had been motivated by pure greed. She said: “The intention was to claim against an over-inflated insurance policy.
“There was significant investment into the shop’s set-up and it is evident that it wasn’t as profitable as expected.”
Mary Ragoobeer’s husband Jose said: “Mary was a hardworking, loving mother and wife who was devoted to her family.
“Shane was in a relationship with a lovely girl called Leah. They were so happy together. Sean was a good person and loving son who, like Shane, was always willing to help family and friends.”
Leah’s sister Molly said: “The light went out of our world on that terrible night.”
Ali, of Oldham, Hassan, from Coventry, and Kurd, of Leicester, were remanded in custody for sentencing next month.