Gardaí probe suspected drug debt link in fatal Waterford fire

Gardaí have launched a murder investigation following an arson attack on a house in Waterford City that killed two adults and two children. The Irish Examiner, the Irish Independent, the Irish Times, Love Belfast, Waterford Live, and Shannonside reported the murder inquiry. Two other children were critically injured in the attack and taken to University Hospital Waterford, the Irish Examiner reported. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]

The victims who died were parents Kim and Philip English and two of their children, named locally as 12 year old Callum and eight year old Jayden, according to the Irish Examiner. Three of the children attended primary school, and the oldest child in the family is 14 years old. As FTMQ News reported earlier, emergency services were first called to the Birchwood estate house at 5:13 am on Tuesday. [1][3][11]

Investigators are looking into a suspected connection between the arson attack and a drug debt owed by a person known to the murdered family, the Irish Examiner reported. The Irish Independent noted that the couple had previously spoken about being targets of an attack before the fatal fire occurred. [1][4]

The house where the fire broke out is a semi-detached property located on Birch Avenue in the Birchwood estate, roughly three kilometres south of Waterford city centre, according to the Irish Times. Waterford Live reported that Garda footage from the scene revealed extensive damage to the property. [1][3][6]