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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Family death fire was deliberate | Family death fire was deliberate |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| A fire which killed a mother and her four daughters in Lancashire was started deliberately, police said. | |
| The bodies of Caneze Riaz, 39, and her daughters Sayrah, 16, Sophia, 15, Alicia, 10, and three-year-old Hannah, were found in the early hours. | The bodies of Caneze Riaz, 39, and her daughters Sayrah, 16, Sophia, 15, Alicia, 10, and three-year-old Hannah, were found in the early hours. |
| Firefighters broke into the property through a bay window of the house in Tremellen Street, Accrington. Police said the doors were locked from inside. | Firefighters broke into the property through a bay window of the house in Tremellen Street, Accrington. Police said the doors were locked from inside. |
| The girls' father, Mohammed Riaz, is in a critical condition in hospital. | The girls' father, Mohammed Riaz, is in a critical condition in hospital. |
| He had to be resuscitated by a firefighter at the scene and is being treated in Wythenshawe Hospital's burns unit. | He had to be resuscitated by a firefighter at the scene and is being treated in Wythenshawe Hospital's burns unit. |
| The house was secured and locked from the inside... whoever set the fire did not leave the premises Det Supt Mick Gradwell | The house was secured and locked from the inside... whoever set the fire did not leave the premises Det Supt Mick Gradwell |
| The couple are said to also have a fifth child, 17-year-old Adam, who has been receiving hospital treatment for leukaemia. | The couple are said to also have a fifth child, 17-year-old Adam, who has been receiving hospital treatment for leukaemia. |
| At a press conference in nearby Blackburn, police said that accelerants were used to start the blaze and there were several seats of fire. They said a murder inquiry was under way. | |
| Lancashire Police are now appealing for anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area on Tuesday night to come forward. | Lancashire Police are now appealing for anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area on Tuesday night to come forward. |
| More than 30 officers, police staff, forensic experts and fire service personnel are working on the inquiry. | More than 30 officers, police staff, forensic experts and fire service personnel are working on the inquiry. |
| The sense of loss, the sense of tragedy and the sense of disbelief is quite staggering Ch Supt David Mallaby | |
| Det Supt Mick Gradwell, leading the investigation, said: "The house was secured and locked from the inside. | |
| "Early indications are that whoever set the fire, and carried out some other suspicious activity I can't go into at this stage, did not leave the premises. | |
| "However, I can't discount that a scene has been staged to suggest this. | |
| "Therefore, inquiries are continuing and I would appeal to anyone who saw anything suspicious to contact the police." | |
| The house has been sealed off while police forensic officers examine the scene. Post-mortem examinations of the bodies were taking place on Wednesday. | |
| 'Worst blaze' | |
| Ch Supt David Mallaby, divisional commander for the Accrington area, said there was a deep sense of loss in the community. | |
| "Rarely if ever have I come across a tragedy of this nature, particularly when one considers the extent to which it may well have been a deliberate event. | |
| "The sense of loss, the sense of tragedy and the sense of disbelief is quite staggering." | |
| A spokeswoman for Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service said the bodies were found upstairs and there was very serious damage to the house. | |
| Michael Frankland, East Lancashire community protection manager for the fire service, said the blaze was one of the worst he had seen in his 26 years' experience. |