A murderer who killed three children in an arson attack and left their mother and baby sister fighting for their lives may have poured petrol down the chimney hours after warning them: ‘I’ll kill you all’.
Michelle Pearson’s daughter Demi, 14, son Brandon, eight, and daughter Lacie, seven, all perished in the house fire in Walkden, Greater Manchester at 5am yesterday.
The children’s 35-year-old mother is heavily sedated in hospital and unaware of the tragedy as she was treated along with her youngest daughter Lia, three, who was in a critical condition last night.
The blaze came just hours after police were called to the property over a previous incident where a man is said to have been heard shouting: ‘I’ll kill you all’.
Two teenage boys – Ms Pearson’s son Kyle and a friend – managed to flee the house as it went up in flames from an upstairs window.
Kyle said last night: ‘I can’t get my head around it. It’s disgraceful. It’s hard to talk about it. I’m in shock.’
Brandon Pearson, eight, and Lacie Pearson, seven, died in the Manchester fire but their youngest sister Lia, three, pictured in their arms, is in a critical condition in hospital
Demi Pearson, 14, was the eldest child to be killed in the deliberate fire in Manchester yesterday as it emerged police had already been to their house hours earlier. Her mother Michelle, 35, survived but is fighting for her life
Pictures from the scene yesterday morning show the fire-damaged window frames of the house. There are claims the fire may have been started via the chimney after climbing up the scaffolding (pictured)
The fire may have been started after fuel was poured into the house from the roof and set alight after clambering up some scaffolding.
Seven-year-old Lacie Pearson (pictured) died following the arson attack at her home on Monday morning
A family friend told The Sun: ‘I heard it (came) down the chimney.’
A stepfather of one of the teenagers who survived told the paper that a man turned up at the house ‘yelling abuse’ and was ‘banging on the door’.
He said: ‘The mum was speaking to him out the window, telling him to ‘pack it in’. She called the police. Officers attended. They took statements. I heard that before the man walked away he yelled, ‘I’ll kill you all’.”
Close friend Janette Dean, 54, claimed Miss Pearson had been in a long-running row with a neighbour, who she said had ‘smashed up’ her house with a hammer last week after an argument.
‘Shell was involved in a row with a bloke and his girlfriend and he smashed up Michelle’s house with a hammer last week after an argument,’ she said.
‘I felt sick when I found out about what had happened. What happened today is terrible, it’s the worst – it’s unbelievable those kids are dead.
‘At the end of the day Michelle had her fair share of problems, but she loved those kids and she was good woman and good mum.’
Police were called to the property at around 2am following a reported incident – three hours before the blaze took hold.
Security had been stepped up at the mid-terrace property and sources said the house had been ‘target hardened’ to protect the family.
An increased security device was fitted on the letterbox and officers said the force had ‘very recent physical contact with the family – within a day of the attack.
Forensic officers attended the scene of a house fire in Salford, Greater Manchester, on Monday. There are claims the fire was started by pouring fuel down the chimney
A metal screen was put up at the entrance to the street following the deliberate fire on Monday morning
Police had set up a forensics tent outside the home, where burnt out windows can be seen
Friends of Demi posted tributes on Facebook after hearing of her tragic death this morning
Police, who described the blaze as ‘murder, using fire’ have made five arrests.
They have now detained a 20-year-old woman, 23-year-old man and two other men aged 20 and 18 on suspicion of murder. A 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.
Last night the 16-year-old brother who escaped the inferno, Kyle Pearson, told of his miraculous survival and paid tribute to siblings Demi, 14, Brandon, eight, and Lacie, seven.
He revealed how he climbed out of an upstairs window then tried to fight his way back inside but was beaten back by flames and smoke.
He said: ‘I fell asleep and the next thing I knew was I could hear my mum screaming “Fire!” There was lots of smoke so I climbed out of an upstairs window.
‘I’ve gone to get back in but a cloud of smoke hit me in the face. I tried to break the front door down and smashed a window, but I couldn’t get in because of the flames and the smoke’.
Paying tribute to his siblings he added: ‘Demi was a top girl, very funny. Brandon was very clever and doing well at school. He was brainy. He loved playing computer games and he was looking forward to Christmas.’
Of Lacie, he said: ‘She was the same, clever.’
His younger sister three-year-old Lia remains in a critical condition in hospital.
Emergency services were called to the house in Salford just before 5am yesterday. One neighbour said she awoke to hear a woman screaming and could see the red glow of the fire through her curtains.
Teenager Demi Pearson was named as the eldest sibling who died. Her brother Brandon and sister Lacie were named as the two who died in hospital. Their mother, Michelle Pearson, 35, is in hospital along with her three-year-old daughter Lia.
Brandon, 8, Lacie, 7, and Lia Pearson, three, sleep together at home, which was set alight yesterday
Lacie Pearson, seven, (left) and her sister Demi (right) have been named as two of the victims of the fire
Brandon, eight, and Lacie, sevem pictured with Peppa Pig, also died following the tragedy in the early hours of Monday
Their mother has been named as Michelle Pearson (pictured) and is still in hospital in a serious condition
There have also been reports that the perpetrator used scaffolding to launch the attack, although there has been no confirmation of this by police.
Chief Supt Wayne Miller said there had been ‘earlier incidents’ at the address, but refused to elaborate further or confirm the nature of the call.
As a result of the prior police contact GMP has voluntarily referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) in line with procedure.
The police chief said: ‘There have been earlier incidents at the address and consequently a referral to the IPCC has been made.’
Greater Manchester Police said there had been ‘previous incidents’ at the terraced home in Worsley. The force has voluntarily referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
Windows at the house were said to have been damaged before while a security device had reportedly been fitted to the letterbox.
Emergency services had been called to the home just three hours before the blaze after a wheelie bin was set on fire.
Police have launched a murder probe amid claims flammable liquid may have been used
Screens have been erected in the street while the police investigation takes place
Police last night were questioning the five suspects – four men and a woman – in custody. They refused to rule out the suspected arson attack being gang-related.
Chief Superintendent Wayne Miller said: ‘The deaths of these three children is heartbreaking.’
He added: ‘I want to describe what this incident is. It’s the murder, using fire, of three children and we have a three-year-old girl fighting for her life. This will devastate this family forever and words cannot describe what they are going through.’
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