A car has been doused in petrol and set on fire in an arson attack on a busy street in Melbourne.
Emergency services rushed to Alexandra Street in St Kilda east at about 9.10pm on Thursday night following reports of a stolen car being set alight.
Dramatic footage by shocked locals captured the exact moment an offender appeared to pour an accelerant through car window before setting it alight.
The silver SUV exploded into a massive ball of flames with fiery sparks and a loud bang, which was heard several streets away.
Photos of the aftermath showed the burnt out car cordoned off with police tape and surrounded by emergency responders.
Other vehicles parked nearby were also damaged.
Some feared the torching was a deliberate attack on the Jewish community as it occurred near a synagogue and several Jewish schools.
However, Victoria Police insisted the incident wasn’t racially, religiously or politically motivated.
Footage captured the shocking moment a stolen car was set alight in St Kilda East
‘Police are investigating a suspicious car fire which occurred in St Kilda East this evening,’ a spokesman told Daily Mail Australia.
‘Fire crews arrived and extinguished the blaze.
The investigation into the fire is ongoing.
‘The incident is not racially, religiously or politically motivated.’
Australian Jewish Association posted on X that it would ‘continue to monitor to see if there is a connection’.
Nearby residents heard explosions as black smoke filled the air.
Shocked locals watched on as the vehicle burst into flames
‘My roommate and I heard this loud bang and thought someone was slamming doors in our apartment building,’ one woman told Daily Mail Australia.
‘A few minutes later, we saw the smoke. It was so close we could see the sparks. The people across the road from us could see the flames from their house and ran out onto the street.
‘They were worried their house would catch. For a few minutes, there were several bangs and pops coming from the fire.’
She added that it was second recent car torching in the neighbourhood.
Another local posted on X: ‘Heard a bunch of emergency vehicles heading down that way not long before. I feared something was up due to the number and variety of sirens.’
Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers.
Police are treating the incident as suspicious. Pictured is the burnt out SUV parked behind vehicle, which was also damaged
