Police believe two suspicious fires on one night are linked
POLICE are investigating two suspicious fires that took place on one night in the same part of Hinckley.
The first fire took hold of two sheds on Gopsall Road at around 11.30pm on Monday May 25.
A spokeswoman for Leicestershire Police said: “A car parked in one of the buildings was damaged and a neighbouring outbuilding also suffered fire damage.”
Several neighbours said it was a scary moment when they were woken up by a loud explosion.
Andrew Darby, who lives on nearby Stanley Road, said: “I heard a big loud bang, I heard some footsteps and someone running by.
“I thought time to be waste.
“Then I saw there was a big crowd and the sheds were on it was a burning strange garden fire.”
He added: “I’m quite easy going and passive, but it does worry you.
“It’s happened somewhere else, that makes it doubly worrying, because it was planned, by the sound of things.
“We’re all quite a close-knit community round here. Everyone’s got children.
“Although no one has been harmed, it’s not something you expect.”
The sheds are owned by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council and rented out.
Roger Hope, who also lives on Stanley Road, said: “We heard an explosion. A minute later we saw a man walking past our houses.
“He had a beanie hat on and black trousers. He was looking back at it [the fire] and walking really suspiciously.”
Officers want to speak to a man who was seen in the Gopsall Road area around the time of the incident.
He is described as being white, of medium build and in his early twenties.
A spokeswoman for Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service said they were called at 11.45pm.
She said: “There were two sheds fully involved in a fire. One appliance from our Hinckley station attended.”
The second fire took place just a few streets away at about 12.30am.
Leicestershire Police said in a statement: “A car port was set alight in Westray Drive which spread to the adjoining house.
“The occupants of the house and neighbouring property were evacuated. No one was injured.
“Damage was caused to the car port and house.”
Darren Greenhill, who lives on Stanley Road, was out on the street looking at the shed fire when the other blaze ignited.
He said: “It was quite frightening. We were all out on the front and then we heard that other one go up.
“We saw smoke coming up over the top. The sky was orange.”
Two crews from Hinckley station attended the second fire, as well as police officers.
Firefighters wearing breathing gear used two hose-reel jets to put out the flames.
The property involved was evacuated, along with those on either side of it, as a precautionary measure, just in case the fire spread.
It happened very near a substation run by Western Power Distribution.
The group said in a statement: “An engineer did attend but when he got there, he found the substation all safe and secure.”
An investigating officer from the fire service is working with police, as the two blazes were being treated as suspicious.
The police spokeswoman said: “Enquiries are ongoing to identify those responsible. Due to the similarities between both incidents they are being linked.”
Police Constable Geraldine Beech is investigating the incidents.
She said: “We do believe both incidents are linked due to the similarities and timescales in which they have occurred.
“Both fires caused extensive damage to items and property and it’s very lucky that no one was injured.
“If you know anything about the incidents or remember seeing someone acting suspiciously in these areas at the beginning of last week then we urge you to get in touch.
“Any information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, could help us move this investigation on.”
Anyone with any information is asked to contact PC 4019 Beech on 101, quoting crime number 20*264274.