A house was deliberately set on fire and a car stolen from the property in Elgin yesterday afternoon, police have confirmed.
The incident occurred in the Sandy Road area of New Elgin around 12.45pm.
Emergency services responded swiftly to the scene, with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service extinguishing the blaze.
No one was within the property at the time.
Meanwhile a Ford Fiesta – which was parked in the driveway of the house – was stolen, along with personal items from the New Elgin property.
The car was later found by police in Elgin’s Brinuth Place.
Officers from Police Scotland are continuing to carry out door-to-door enquiries and are also gathering any relevant CCTV from in and around the area for any additional information it may provide.
Police looking for male suspect
Detective Inspector Andrew Wilson said: “We have established that the stolen car was driven down Sandy Road towards Springfield Road with a male driving and we are checking all relevant CCTV footage for any further sightings of the car as it is still to be traced.
“I am appealing to anyone who was in the Sandy Road area at the time and saw a man acting suspiciously to contact us. I’d also appeal for anyone with recording equipment, such as dashcams and doorbell devices, to check the footage as it’s possible images could have been captured that would assist our investigation.”
Anyone with information is urged to call Police Scotland via 101, quoting incident number 1470 of November 13, 2024. Alternatively, please call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where you can give your information anonymously.
‘Two cats suffering from smoke inhalation were treated’
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman added: “We were alerted at 12.50pm on Wednesday, November 13, to reports of a dwelling fire on Sandy Road, Elgin.
“Three fire appliances were mobilised to the scene where crews extinguished a fire affecting the living room window.
“There were no reported casualties. Two cats suffering from smoke inhalation were treated by firefighters using Smokey Paws kit.
“Crews left the scene at 2.32pm after ensuring the area was made safe.”
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