Three men have been jailed for life after they deliberately set fire to a shop in Leicester, causing an explosion that killed five people.

Shopkeeper Aram Kurd, 34, and his friends Arkan Ali, 37, and Hawkar Hassan, 33, plotted to destroy the Polish supermarket in order to claim £300,000 in insurance because the business was failing.

They were found guilty of murder in December.

Kurd and Ali have been sentenced to at least 38 years, while Hassan will serve no less than 33 years.

Leicester explosion victims' father describes anguish

Ali's girlfriend, Viktorija Ijevleva, who worked in the shop, was left to die in the blaze because she had been in on the plot and "knew too much".


Ms Ijevleva and Mary Ragoobeer, 46, her teenage sons Shane and Sean, and 18-year-old Leah Beth Reek, who was Shane's girlfriend, were all killed in the blast in February 2018.

Image: The blast destroyed the shop in Leicester in February

Family members wept in the public gallery as Leah's mother Joanne told the court: "The light went out of our world on that terrible night. No parent should have to plan a funeral for their child.

"I've not yet had a day when I haven't cried. We don't laugh as much or enjoy things in the same way. We have a Leah shaped hole in our hearts."

Image: Sean Rajoobeer, 17, (left) Shane Rajoobeer,18, and and their mother Mary were killed

The Ragoobeer family lived in the flat above the shop which was completely destroyed.

Mrs Ragoobeer's husband Jose was out at work at the time of the explosion. Their third son, Scotty, survived after he was rescued from the rubble.

Mr Ragoobeer says the loss of his wife and two sons has left him shattered.

He said: "I've got hate in my heart for the first time as what they've done is incredible.

"And they are without any emotion. It's very hard to be in court to sit and see them.

"I feel angry because since me and my wife came to England we've been doing two jobs all the time for our kids. And they wanted to make easy money. It's why I hate what they have done."

Image: Victim Leah Beth Reek was 18

Prosecutor David Herbert QC told the trial that Kurd, Ali and Hassan intended to maximise the damage to the premises and "would have known" people would have been in the two-storey flat above.

The day before the explosion, Hassan was seen on CCTV buying 26 litres of petrol. The container he put it in was recovered from the wreckage after the fire.

Greed at heart of 'callous' fire plot

On the night of the blast, Ali doused the basement of the building with petrol before running to be collected in the getaway car, driven by Hassan.

Kurd remained in the shop, emerging soon after the blast feigning shock and concern for the victims.

In the hours afterwards he did a series of television interviews pretending to be worried about people trapped inside the building.

Following the sentencing, Leah's sister Michelle Reek said: "The last 11 months have been the worst months of our lives and sitting through the trial only added to our pain and heartbreak.

"We will now try to move on as best as we can together, never forgetting the ones we love so much who we will always think about with every passing day."

Detective chief inspector Michelle Keen from Leicestershire Police told Sky News: "This was a really callous act borne out of greed and financial gain and showed a real disregard for human life."

Outside court, she added: "I've never dealt with an incident that has caused so much devastation, both to families who have lost their loved ones and also to members of the wider community.

"That devastation is still clear to see, almost a year on, and the families will never recover from their loss and all because of the callous actions of three men who were motivated by money and greed."