Murdered in their beds: Family of 4 children killed by arsonists say officials have ‘blood on hands’
POLICE and housing officials were last night accused of having ‘blood on their hands’ over a horrific petrol bombing which killed four children as they slept and left their mother fighting for her life.
Lia Pearson, three, and her older siblings Lacie, seven, Brandon, eight, and Demi, 15, died after flames ripped through their home before Christmas.
Their mother Michelle Pearson, 37, spent months in a coma and remains dangerously ill and struggling to comprehend her loss.
As two men were yesterday each given four life sentences over the arson murders, which stemmed from a petty ‘tit-for-tat’ dispute, relatives voiced their anger at claims of police inaction and the failure to rehouse the family following previous threats.
Zak Bolland, 23, who had waged an esca- lating feud with Miss Pearson’s son Kyle, then 16, was ordered to serve a minimum of 40 years in jail, while David Worrall, 25, who helped launch the attack, will spend at least 37 years behind bars.
Bolland’s then-girlfriend Courtney Brierley, 20, who drove them to the house in Walkden, Greater Manchester, was cleared of attempted murder but convicted of four counts of manslaughter and given a 21-year term at Manchester Crown Court.
The Pearson family – who had received a series of threats and had their bin set on fire – were asleep when Bolland and Worrall struck at 5am on December 11.
In harrowing evidence, the trial heard how after the petrol-bombing, Brandon and Lacie were found face- down on a bedroom floor, with Demi on a bunk bed, hands stretched out to the open window, and Lia in the bath.
Relatives said they were furious that Salford Council allegedly ignored pleas by Miss Pearson for the family to be rehoused after previous attacks and say police should have intervened earlier.
Lia’s grandfather Geoffrey Dawes said: ‘Michelle was telling the housing she needed to be moved as a matter of urgency because she believed their lives were in danger. These people have blood on their hands.’ The dispute erupted after Bolland blamed Kyle when his car was set alight on November 25.
The next day, Bolland smashed the Pearsons’ windows, but officers misunderstood Miss Pearson’s views on giving evidence and took no action. Kyle received threats from Bolland that he would petrol-bomb his home. Police met Miss Pearson, and she drilled the letterbox shut. The fire service also fitted a cover to it, but on December 9, the Pearsons’ wheelie bin was set on fire. Four hours before the petrol-bombing, Bolland and Worrall came to the house, with Bolland shouting: ‘Watch, all your family’s getting it. They’re all gonna die.’ Two officers decided to drive past hourly. But at 5am, after filling two bottles with £1.50 of petrol, Bolland hurled his through a window where it exploded near the stairs, blocking the only exit. They fled with Brierley in a waiting car. Only Kyle and friend Bobby Harris escaped.
Greater Manchester Police has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, while Salford Council is carrying out a serious case review.
As well as the four murders, Bolland was found guilty of three counts of attempted murder, while Worrall was convicted of three counts of attempted GBH with intent. Brierley was found guilty of four counts of manslaughter, but cleared of three counts of attempted murder.
Detective Chief Inspector Lewis Hughes, of Greater Manchester Police, said: ‘This is one of the most heartbreaking cases I have ever dealt with.’
‘She told the council she had to move urgently’