A PETROL bomb thrown at a window set light to carpet inside a halal butcher's shop on Devonport Road, Blackburn.

Fire station officer Tom Davies said the device was thrown at an upstairs window and some of the petrol splashed through the broken window, setting light to the carpet in a room used as a store.

Firefighters broke into the shop at 2.45am today and put out the blaze.

No-one was in the shop at the time of the attack. The window frame and carpet were damaged by fire. Police are investigating the incident.

Owner Mr Khizar Suleman, of Roney Street, Blackburn, was said to be shocked by the incident.

Employees at the store, which was undamaged on the ground floor, said they were baffled by the incident and had never experienced any problems before.

Police Inspector Mike Simmons said they would continue interviews today.

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