- New CCTV footage has been released of suspects fleeing the scene
- Four or more men are said to have links to organized crime
- READ MORE: Friendlyjordies’ house is bombed
New footage has been released showing two cars fleeing the scene shortly after a controversial YouTube star’s home went up in flames a year ago.
Detectives from the Arson Unit have released new CCTV footage of the alleged arson last year at the Bondi home of Friendlyjordies, real name Jordan Shanks-Markovina, in the hope of finding the perpetrators.
At approximately 12:20 am on Wednesday, November 23, 2022, emergency services were called to a house on Wilga Street in Bondi following reports of a fire.
Shanks-Markovina was not home when four or more men with possible ties to organized crime drove by and allegedly set the place on fire before taking off.
The new footage has been released by detectives as they launch a new appeal for information about the night, hoping to break a years-long deadlock in solving the crime.
Police have released CCTV footage in hopes of a breakthrough in the alleged arson at the home of YouTube personality Friendlyjordies, which may be linked to organized crime
Jordan Shanks-Markovina, also known as Friendlyjordies, was not in the house when a group of four or more men firebombed it just after midnight on November 23, 2022.
The attack is believed to be the second of its kind in a week after police revealed a small fire had been quickly extinguished on November 16.
The Nov. 23 fire would be the second targeted attack on the beach property in less than a week, Shanks-Markovina’s law firm Xenophon Davis claimed at the time.
“We hope that all possible law enforcement resources will be deployed today to secure evidence and information,” the company tweeted.
“It could even justify a Strike Force that focuses on terrorism and attempted murder rather than dangerous pranks.”
Firefighters desperately tried to get the fire under control, but the home sustained significant damage.
Officers from the Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command cordoned off a crime scene and specialist forensic police and dogs ‘trained in the use of detection accelerators’ were at the house searching the rubble.
Police believe four or more men in two cars traveled from the Campbelltown area to Shanks-Markovina’s home around the time of the attack.
Clearly the men may have done that has links to organized crime networks and that one of them is currently assisting the police in their investigations.
The suspects were divided between two cars: a black 2018 Mercedes c200, presumed stolen with cloned license plates, and a silver 2013 Ford Falcon with reflective stickers under the license plate.
Detectives revealed the Mercedes fled north on Rowland Avenue towards Wilga Street and the Ford Falcon escaped via both Bondi Road and Glen Street.
The front of the Bondi house was badly damaged and forensic investigators were on the scene for days collecting evidence
Shanks-Markovina announced that he temporarily stopped making videos after the second suspected arson
Shortly after the fire, Shanks-Markovina announced he was taking a break from posting videos as his house was bombed for a second time.
It was also revealed that a smaller fire had previously broken out at the Bondi house on November 16, but was extinguished before it could cause any significant damage.
Shanks-Markovina, who rose to fame with his political videos, lived at the back of the house and was not home at the time of the fire.
He later returned to the house on November 23 to inspect the damage and claimed he had a “long list” of suspects who had been angered by his political comments and videos.
“Well, obviously we don’t know who did it,” he said at the scene as investigators sifted through the rubble and ash nearby for clues.
‘There is a long list of suspects, but no idea who it is.
“It’s clear that we’ve had some extremely dangerous reporting over the last year, about a bunch of extremely powerful people and companies, I think.”