CCTV shows alleged petrol bombing of car and house while mum and son are inside

21 March 2024 , 12:32

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CCTV shows alleged petrol bombing of car and house while mum and son are inside

This is the moment CCTV captured an alleged petrol bomb attack on a car and house, while a mum and son were inside.

The car and front door to the house were left blackened and smouldering from the shocking attack. Mum Laura Coupland, 39, and her son Lincoln-Jay, 11, were forced to leave the property in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, due to the aftermath of the devastating blaze. The terrifying video footage shows a car surrounded by flames while an individual stands and watches the fire unfold.

Police attended the incident but said the investigation was closed due to a lack of evidence. Laura, who has since moved to a new home, said: "Me, my son and dogs were in that house asleep at the time. My son was too scared to go back - it's had quite a big effect on us both.

Video showed the aftermath of the fire with and the extent of the damage to the property (Laura Coupland / SWNS)

Laura Coupland with her son Lincoln-Jay, who were victims of an alleged petrol bombing (Laura Coupland / SWNS)

"I nearly had a nervous breakdown over it all and became very depressed. It's affected my son too, he's become quite angry about it. The fire damaged the house and wrecked everything." Laura says the alleged attack, which happened in July 2023, has upended their lives and says they lost everything as the fire caused smoke damage through the three-bed house.

She claims two petrol bombs were thrown - one at her car and one at her front door. And she says they had to live in temporary accommodation before the council could offer them a new home. Despite moving into a new property in October 2023, Laura says as they've been moved out of their local area her son now has to attend a new school.

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The blaze caused serious damage to the car (Laura Coupland / SWNS)

She says she's frustrated by the response from police as no arrests were made. Laura said: "It was frustrating because it's serious - I was so angry, I was fuming. I'm hoping the video might appeal to someone's conscience.

"We lost everything, our home and car, my son was meant to go to a local school but obviously that all changed. Luckily our neighbour had a hose and put the front door fire and the car out until the fire brigade arrived. Above the front door was a gas boiler so we're very lucky it wasn't worse."

A CCTV image of the family's car going up in flames (Laura Coupland / SWNS)

A spokesperson for Lincolnshire Police said: "We can confirm we attended this incident at Hemswell Cliff on 11 July 2023. We provided what support we could however, there was not enough evidence to proceed further with an investigation."

Josie Adnitt