Thorn Athletic 'devastated' as equipment worth £20,000 destroyed in deliberate fire

A Renfrewshire football club say equipment worth £20,000 belonging to them has been “completely devastated” by a deliberate fire in their shipping container.

Police were called to reports of the container found alight in the Greenend Avenue area of Johnstone around 4.15am on Saturday,

The fire was extinguished by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and investigations are ongoing.

Thorn Athletic said the storage unit at their facility was targeted, and equipment worth more than £20,000 was “completely destroyed”.

The fire was extinguished by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and enquiries are ongoing. Thorn Athletic Community

Images showed a number of goals, ladders, footballs, cones and nets burnt out by the blaze, with charred items strewn across the grass.

The inside of the container and the exterior suffered significant fire damage, and the club stating that “nothing escaped the devastation” of the fire.

A spokesman for Thorn Athletic Community Trust said: “We are devastated after the loss of around £20,000 of equipment used to service our community pitch and run our football programmes.

“This targeted and mindless act has ripped through the heart of our organisation and has affected our ability to do the things we love for the community around us.

“Much of the equipment was brand new and ready to be used over the summer to provide local children with free activities. It’s time people realised the consequences of their actions.

“We have operated here for 15 years for the benefit of everyone. How someone could do this is beyond comprehension.”

Detective constable Kenny McLachlan, of Paisley CID, said: “The container was extensively damaged with a high value of property destroyed. Thankfully, there were no reports of any injuries.

“I am appealing to anyone who heard or saw anything suspicious in the local area to contact us. I would ask residents who have video doorbell, CCTV or possible dashcam footage to review it, as it may have captured something that can assist our enquiries.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Police Scotland on 101 quoting incident 0614 of May 24.

Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, if you wish to remain anonymous.