Four men charged in connection to stolen motor vehicle which caused Clarendon Vale bushfire on Monday

Police yesterday charged four men in connection to a stolen motor vehicle which was set alight in Clarendon Vale on Monday afternoon and caused a large bushfire.

An 18-year-old Clarendon Vale man has been charged with motor vehicle stealing and being in possession of stolen property. Three Clarendon Vale men (aged, 22, 17, and 21) have been charged with being in possession of stolen property. All three were bailed to appear at a later date.

Police will allege that the 18-year-old man stole a white Toyota Hilux from South Arm between Sunday night and early Monday afternoon.

Around 7.55pm on Monday, police located the ute burnt out in an area of bushland at Clarendon Vale. The ute fire had caused a bushfire which required a large scale response from the Tasmania Fire Service, including the use of five helicopters and ground crew from Rokeby, Lauderdale, and Seven Mile Beach.

As part of the police investigation, the four men were located by police yesterday in possession of stolen property from the stolen ute.

The police investigation is ongoing to determine who was responsible for setting the ute alight, which subsequently caused the bushfire. The person responsible will potentially face arson or related charges.

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