London : An Indian-origin family of four in the UK had a lucky escape when their house was targeted in an “unprovoked” arson attack which the police is treating as a hate crime. Mayur Karlekar, called as Mac Karlekar, and his wife Ritu and two young children were asleep in their home late on Saturday night when they were woken up by neighbours, who had called in the fire brigade to tackle a huge blaze outside their home in London’s Borkwood Park area of Orpington.
“The Metropolitan Police is investigating this as a hate crime. It is being dealt with as a case of arson and criminal damage. No arrests have been made so far,” a Metropolitan Police spokesperson said on Wednesday.
CCTV images reportedly show a group of four-five youths, dressed in hoodies, attempting to start a fire on the hedges outside the Karlekars’ home. “We all were sleeping and were luckily woken up by neighbours on time. Though most of the damage was done to the hedges leaving the house now exposed, my son’s bedroom was just saved – he was sleeping in it at the time,” said Karlekar, a digital consultant who move to the UK from Mumbai in late 1990s.