source : the age
An arson squad detective has revealed the horror injury toll on young arsonists accepting firebombing jobs from crime bosses who consider them “expendable”.
Detective Inspector Chris Murray said two arsonists were currently on life support, 20 had been seriously injured, and one has died in botched arson attacks across the city.
Murray said he was becoming sick of making pleas for youth to think of the consequences of committing crimes for someone they didn’t know.
“Think about your safety, the stats are pretty dire at the moment … that’s just so far, and I say so far, because this is just a flip of the coin when they conduct these acts,” he said.
“I want to get the message out there that the fact you’re doing these jobs for people you don’t know, and as we see you’re often even not getting paid for it – they’re reneging, they’re backing out of the payment.
“The people [ordering] these arsons [see you] as the individuals who are expendable.
“You’re just cannon fodder to these ‘taskers’ … you are their business model. Without you, their model doesn’t work.”
In the string of fires set last month, a 13-year-old suffered burns to 90 per cent of his body after a botched attack on a home in Taylors Hill. He had been promised a $3000 payment.
Two 16-year-olds appeared at the Children’s Court charged with conduct endangering life, recklessly causing serious injury in circumstances of gross violence, arson and theft of a motor vehicle. One had no prior criminal history.
On Tuesday, a factory on Centre Road in Springvale was destroyed by fire just before midnight. Three offenders, wearing hoodies and face coverings, were seen fleeing the scene in a white car. The owner of Etuners Motorsport was notified by a mobile alarm but by the time emergency services arrived, the fire had taken hold.
It was the second time the business has been targeted, after a drive-by shooting in October.
Murray said police would investigate the involvement of organised crime, but it could simply be attempts to intimidate a reputable, successful business.
“This business and the owner is certainly co-operating, completely innocent and certainly scratching his head about why he would be targeted,” Murray said.
This masthead revealed in a special series last week that crime gangs are recruiting young offenders in random approaches on the street, and even at a funeral, to commit arson, abductions, carjackings and home invasions.
Just one middle man had access to more than 2000 foot soldiers.
Over the past decade, arson attacks across the state soared nearly 75 per cent to 3600 incidents a year in 2026 from a record low in 2021.
Arson attacks are becoming so common, police sometimes issue alerts to firefighters in advance – called a “pre-warning” – that a target somewhere in their service area could soon be hit.
Murray said after a spate of attacks across the past two months, police had increased patrols, and targeted operations were resulting in arrests.
The Retailers Association had also started working with police to identify suspicious transactions of jerrycans and fuel which was already “paying dividends”, he said.
But Murray reiterated that the fastest way to break the back of the attacks was for kids to stop putting their hands up for jobs.
“If you want to roll the dice, there’s every chance you’re going to get caught,” he said.
“I’m sick of standing up here and saying the same thing, and I really do hope it resonates with the kids and youth who seem to be constantly putting their hands up for these jobs, it just beggars belief.
“We see them in the most vulnerable state when they’re caught. The tears, the family’s tears, and they’re now sorry.
“You can say no.”
Murray said once offenders “dip their toe in the water”, it was very difficult to back out, with crime gangs using threats and intimidation to keep them accepting jobs.
“I hope the people that are tasking these acts … start to run out of people who want to put their hand up for these jobs because that is where I can see this business model starting to collapse, that these kids – youth offenders – actually have the courage to say, ‘I’m not going to do it, it’s not worth it. I’m not going to get paid’.”
Anyone with information on the Springvale fire or drive-by shooting is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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