A man has been charged and will face court over an arson attack on a reception centre in Melbourne's north.
A 20-year-old St Albans man was arrested and charged on Thursday in connection to a reception centre firebombing and will front the Melbourne Magistrates' Court.
The man faces two counts of criminal damage by fire, reckless conduct endangering serious injury, theft of motor vehicle and committing a crime while on bail.
The Emerald Reception Centre on Settlement Road in Thomastown sustained millions of dollars damage when it was set alight on February 22.
Police allege the man arrived at the site in a stolen Ford Ranger about 5.50am and set the reception centre alight before leaving in the same vehicle.
The car was found burnt out about 2.5km from the crime scene in Bundoora less than half an hour later.
Nobody was injured in the attack.
Detectives from Taskforce Lunar investigating an ongoing conflict over illicit tobacco in Victoria believe the reception centre is not linked to the underworld trade war which has been been connected to 38 arsons.
However they think the venue was probably targeted because of an event scheduled to be held there.
Emerald Reception Centre said it was devastated by the incident and was cooperating with the police investigation.
Detective Inspector Graham Banks said he understood the community's concern following a significant number of arsons over the past week.
"Disrupting these syndicates and ending this criminality remains a priority for Victoria Police," Det Insp Banks said.
The arrest comes as the detective overseeing the taskforce said a licensing scheme for tobacco shops would help tackle the illicit tobacco war in Victoria.
Victoria remains the outlier when it comes to a licensing scheme for tobacco stores to operate, Detective Superintendent Jason Kelly said.
"We are the only state at the moment who does not have a licensing scheme, and I'd say that's a contributing factor to why we're seeing what we're seeing currently in Victoria," Det Supt Kelly said on ABC radio.
"Any licensing scheme would certainly assist law enforcement, local councils, the health department in terms of tackling the problems we've got at the moment."
Victorian and federal police and border force officers in February busted an attempt to illegally smuggle more than 10 million cigarettes through the state's ports destined for the illicit tobacco market.
Australian Associated Press
