Woman and children left shaken after 'petrol bomb' attack in Londonderry

A woman and three children have been left shaken after a car was set alight outside a house in Londonderry.

It happened in the Clon Elagh area on Thursday night.

Police said they believe a petrol bomb type device was thrown into the boot of the vehicle which was parked in the driveway.

Fire crews attended and extinguished the blaze and there were no reports of any injuries.

A 50-year-old man who was arrested on suspicion of arson, was later released on bail to allow further police enquiries.

Police said: "A report was received at approximately 11.05pm on Thursday, 5 October that a car was on fire in the driveway of a property.

"Officers attended alongside colleagues from the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service who extinguished the blaze.

"The car was completely burnt out as a result of the fire, which we are treating as arson.

"A woman and three children were inside the house at the time, thankfully no injuries were reported. However, they were left understandably shaken by what happened.

"Our investigation is underway and the fire is believed at this time to have been ignited by a petrol bomb type device that was thrown into the boot of the vehicle.

"Officers arrested a man, aged 50, a short time later on suspicion of arson. He remains in custody at this time as enquiries are continuing.

"We are appealing to anyone with information about what happened to get in touch with us.

"We are also keen to hear from anyone who may have been travelling in the area shortly before or after 11pm on Thursday and saw any suspicious activity to contact us on 101."

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