Watch: Shocking moment former Poulton restaurant boss wore blonde wig disguise before revenge arson attack
An ex-restaurant boss wore a blonde wig disguise to set fire to a business in Poulton.
This is the shocking moment an ex-boss wore a blonde wig disguise before setting fire to an Indian restaurant in a ‘revenge’ attack.
CCTV footage shows Fakhrul Islam, 37, sporting the wig as as he walked towards Seventy One Indian on Breck Road in Poulton.
Moments later, he torched the restaurant on December 8, 2024.
Although the restaurant was empty at the time, staff members from the business and a family living above the premises had to be helped to safety after nearby nightclub workers spotted the blaze. The venue suffered extensive damage, with the business forced to close until earlier this month.
It was later revealed Islam - who once worked at the Indian restaurant - carried out the attack in ‘revenge’ against the new owners.
The 37-year-old, of Hemingway, Blackpool, initially denied the offence, claiming he had been driving around while working as a taxi driver. but later admitted arson and was jailed for seven-and-a-half years at Preston Crown Court.
The judge described the fire as a "revenge attack motivated by ill-feeling towards the restaurant’s new owners".