MORE than 25 vehicles have been damaged in a fire at a car dealership in Co. Down.
The incident, which happened at the Landsdowne Industrial Estate area of Newtownards in the early hours of this morning, is being treated as arson, PSNI officers have confirmed.
Detectives are now appealing for information following the attack on the business.
Detective Sergeant Shivers said: “At approximately 3.20am, we received a report that a number of vehicles had been set on fire at a car dealership.
“Officers along with colleagues from the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service attended and the fire was extinguished.”
They added: “Approximately 25 cars and a trailer have been badly damaged in the blaze.
“We are investigating this as an incident of arson. This was a completely reckless attack which could have had serious consequences.
"Thankfully, no injuries have been reported.
“At the present time we are keeping an open mind as to the motivation behind this attack however a primary line of enquiry is that it is linked to the ongoing feud between rival drugs gangs across Ards and North Down.”
Det Ser Shivers appealed to the public to come forward with any information that may assist their investigation.
“I would appeal to anyone who may have seen anyone suspicious in the area at the time of the fire or to anyone with dash-cam or CCTV footage that could assist with enquiries, to contact detectives on 101 quoting reference 108 of 18/04/23," they said.
