25 cars damaged in arson attack linked to Ards and North Down feud

An investigation has been launched following arson attack at a business in the Landsdowne Industrial Estate area of Newtownards in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Twenty-five cars and a trailer were badly damaged.

Detective Sergeant Shivers said: “At approximately 3.20am, we received a report that a number of vehicles had been set on fire at a car dealership.

“Officers along with colleagues from the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service attended and the fire was extinguished.

“Approximately 25 cars and a trailer have been badly damaged in the blaze.

“We are investigating this as an incident of arson. This was a completely reckless attack which could have had serious consequences. Thankfully, no injuries have been reported.

“At the present time we are keeping an open mind as to the motivation behind this attack however a primary line of enquiry is that it is linked to the ongoing feud between rival drugs gangs across Ards and North Down.

“I would appeal to anyone who may have seen anyone suspicious in the area at the time of the fire or to anyone with dash-cam or CCTV footage that could assist with enquiries, to contact detectives on 101 quoting reference 108 of 18/04/23."

Anyone with any information about this incident or who may be able to help with the investigation, is asked to call detectives in Larne on the non-emergency number 101 quoting reference number 100 29/04/21, or to submit a report online using the non-emergency reporting form via http://www.psni.police.uk/makeareport/. You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at http://crimestoppers-uk.org/.