Man, 18, held on suspicion of murder after house blaze that left four dead

AN 18-year-old is being held on suspicion of murder after a house fire left four dead.

The man, from Lytham, Lancs, was arrested following the fire last Saturday evening. He is not a family member.

Police confirmed yesterday the fire was started inside a wardrobe in one of the bedrooms at the house on Lytham Road, Freckleton.

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Four people, Reece Smith, 19, four-year-old twin girls Holly and Ella Smith and Jordan Smith, two, were killed in the blaze.

Det Chief Insp Neil Esseen, from Lancashire Police, said: “I can confirm that this fire is now being treated as suspicious. We are following a number of lines of inquiry and have spoken with a number of people who were at the house on the night in question. However, I would still urge anybody who has any information which they believe could assist us with our investigation to come forward.”

Mr Esseen, speaking at the crime scene, said that, despite the arrest, police still needed help from the public.

He added: “Obviously, given that we now have a man under arrest, I cannot go into details about certain aspects of the investigation. At this stage it is still unclear as to what happened in the lead-up to the fire starting.

“This is a tragic incident and our thoughts remain with the family at such a difficult time. “We have specially trained officers supporting them and they are being kept informed.”