Three individuals have been taken into custody following two distinct arson incidents across County Tyrone on Sunday evening.
Emergency services responded to a fire at a residential property situated on Gortgonis Terrace in Coalisland at approximately 23:40 BST. Investigators determined that the blaze had been deliberately set inside a refuse bin positioned adjacent to a storage shed on the grounds. The shed door sustained damage, and smoke penetrated the interior of the structure, though no additional harm was documented.
A second deliberately started fire occurred at an unoccupied building in Coolnafranky Park, Cookstown. Flames were restricted to the living room, though smoke spread to neighbouring rooms within the property. Neither location was occupied at the time of the incidents, and no casualties resulted from either fire.
The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service deployed crews to both locations and successfully extinguished the blazes.
This incident follows a pattern of arson-related activity in the region. In the preceding weeks, police investigated a petrol bomb attack on a Coalisland house on 11 July, which officers characterised as reckless, and three properties in Newtownards were targeted by masked attackers on 27 July, damaging homes, vehicles and a business.
Arrests and charges
In connection with the Coalisland fire, a 23-year-old man was arrested and is being questioned on suspicion of arson.
The Cookstown incident led to the arrest of two men aged 20 and 19. Both face questioning on suspicion of offences including arson with recklessness as to whether life would be endangered—a more serious charge than simple arson that reflects the potential danger posed by the fire.
Key facts
- Two fires were deliberately started in County Tyrone on Sunday evening
- The Coalisland fire was set in a bin near a shed; the Cookstown fire was confined to a living room in a vacant property
- Three arrests were made: one 23-year-old in Coalisland and two men aged 20 and 19 in Cookstown
- No injuries were reported at either location
- The arrests follow recent arson incidents elsewhere in Northern Ireland
