Alleged thief flees Hunter Valley crime scene ‘engulfed in flames’

An alleged thief was caught on camera fleeing a scene in NSW “in flames”.
Emergency services rushed to a burning business on the New England Highway in Thornton at around 1.05am on February 10.
Fire crews extinguished the fire, which caused minimal structural damage to the building, but a large amount of stock was destroyed and a cash register was missing.

Detectives located the scene and found security camera footage of the incident that claimed two people were in the area at the time of the fire.
In the footage, the men were wearing dark clothing and balaclavas and police believe they were driving in a light-coloured hatchback.
“One of the men appears to have left the area with his lower body engulfed in flames,” a police spokesman said.
“The man may have suffered burns after the incident.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers.

