New details have emerged about a devastating house fire that sent several Brisbane streets into lockdown over the weekend.
The unfolding revelations show that the victims are a local family whose name is already synonymous with profound personal tragedy.
One of the three homes completely destroyed in the Clontarf blaze belongs to the grieving parents of murdered teenager Angus Beaumont.
In a cruel twist, authorities allege that the arsonist who caused the destruction is a member of their own family.
A Second Wave of Hardship for a Stricken Family
It has been six years since the Beaumont family had their lives forever changed by a violent crime.
Their 15-year-old son, Angus, was tragically stabbed to death by teenagers in a Redcliffe carpark back in 2020.
Yesterday, the family’s sanctuary erupted into intense flames in an alleged domestic violence arson attack on their property.
Family member Mandy Beaumont shared the heartbreaking reality online, noting that it looks like they have lost absolutely everything.
“This on top of this is just too much,” she wrote on a fundraising page set up for the victims. “It was an arson attack while they were in the house.”
Angus Beaumont was stabbed to death in 2020. Nine
A Desperate Escape Against the Clock
The volatile blaze quickly spread to two neighboring homes on the residential block, with all three properties eventually destroyed by the inferno.
Those inside the home are understood to have made several urgent Triple Zero calls for help over a four-hour period leading up to the incident.
As the fire took hold, the family was forced to leave almost all of their earthly possessions behind in a frantic race against time to flee.
Amid the chaos, they managed to save one irreplaceable item: the urn containing Angus’s precious ashes.
The massive inferno forced streets to be evacuated. Nine
The Alleged Offender Faces the Judiciary
The alleged offender was taken into custody a short time later after being tracked down by a specialized police dog squad in the area.
Corey Wardle, who is Angus’s half-brother and runs a local yard maintenance business, stands accused of the deliberate destruction.
Police allege that Wardle doused the family home with jerry cans of accelerant before setting the entire structure alight.
The alleged attack could be domestic violence related, police believe. Nine
Wardle has been officially refused bail and is scheduled to face the Redcliffe Magistrates Court tomorrow.
He faces a domestic violence arson charge alongside three distinct counts of domestic violence attempted murder for his alleged actions.