POLICE are hunting for a badly burned man after a suspected botched arson attack on the family of a convicted drug dealer.
The man torched a car close to the home of Pradeep Bhowmick – a freight shipping clerk jailed for cocaine smuggling.
The arsonist is believed to have become engulfed in a fireball after setting alight a £40,000 BMW 5 Series, before fleeing the scene in agony.
Bhowmick was jailed for 12 years at the High Court in Glasgow this month after being convicted of attempting to smuggle £2 million of cocaine hidden inside computers into the UK.
The 31-year-old and James Quinn, 32, were caught when UK Border Agency officials searched a lorry that had arrived in Hull on a ferry from Amsterdam in September 2013.
Officers found 8kg of high purity cocaine hidden in the machines which were bound for a firm in Clydebank.
It is not known who carried out the arson attack or why.
It happened outside an address linked to Bhowmick in Renfrew on Thursday.
Detective Constable Louise Kane of Paisley CID said: “While the motive for this attack has still to be determined, we believe it was targeted.
“Officers are currently checking CCTV and speaking to neighbours but would appeal to anyone who has information to contact Paisley CID on 101.”
A spokesman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said Thursday’s blaze was threatening a nearby house when they arrived on the scene.
He added: “We notified police as there was no immediate obvious cause for the fire, which means it was potentially started deliberately.”
The BMW was engulfed in flames and the engine of a red Toyota Aygo had also caught fire.
One neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “We are all shocked by this.
“It was just down the road from me.
“I have kids and it’s worrying to think something like this can happen on your doorstep.”
There was no response from the Bhowmick address.
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