Asylum seeker hurls firebomb as gruesome attack leaves dozens with horrific burns
AN ASYLUM seeker threw a lit bottle of petrol into a busy bank before setting himself on fire during an attack which left dozens horrifically burned.
HORROR as man causes explosion in Melbourne Bank
The 21-year-old attacker wreaked havoc at the Melbourne bank when he lit the petrol bottle which subsequently exploded.
Witnesses described horrific burns and people on fire as 26 victims were hospitalised including a toddler and an 80-year-old elderly man.
The perpetrator has now been identified as an asylum seeker who arrived in Australia three years ago by boat from Myanmar.
The 21-year-old attacker wreaked havoc at the Melbourne bank
He lit himself on fire using the burning petrol, as flames ripped through the bank in Melbourne, one of Australia's major cities.
The unnamed man ran from the bank with horrific burns and was found cowering and badly burnt in a nearby alley.
Emergency crews rushed to the scene, as the attack took place next to a primary school and near one of Melbourne's busiest train stations.
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This guy just came into the bank and poured petrol and started lighting up. I’m so lucky I got out
Ashley Atkin-Fone, who found the attacker, said: "He was a mess, he had his skin ripped off.
"There was no way he was going to get away. He was in shock."
He is now under police guard at a local hospital while two of his victims remain in a critical state.
Tran Phan, a local trader at the bank said: “This guy just came into the bank and poured petrol and started lighting up. I’m so lucky I got out.”
A businesswoman at a store across the road described the aftermath as “horrifying”.
She said: "One man was crying, screaming, “Why me? Why me?"
Flames ripped through the bank in Australia
26 victims were hospitalised including a toddler and an 80-year-old elderly man
Officials revealed that the man have arrived by boat at Christmas Island in 2013 and had been living in the community on a bridging visa.
According to asylum officials, he had been struggling to support his family back in Myanmar with the government benefits paid every two weeks.
Witnesses said the offender screamed about not having enough money and being constantly moved around.