Camden New Journal - By PAUL KEILTHY and SARA NEWMAN Published: 24 January 2008
Forensics investigators Michelle Kopitzke and Roshni Ramdahwa at Kentish Town police with Vulcan the fish
Police fish for clues in suspected arson
A STAR witness to a fire started in fishy circumstances was cooling off in the tank this weekend – but detectives expect him to tell no tales.
Vulcan, a two-inch black carp, was rescued from the charred remains of a flat in Rowley Way, Kilburn, by forensic officers investigating reports of an explosion on Friday evening.
He has been held in an adapted drinking fountain at Kentish Town police station while detectives investigate the blaze, which an initial fire brigade inspection suggested was suspicious.
Scene of crime officers Michelle Kopitzke and Roshni Ramdahwa used a jar normally reserved for body parts to transport the goldfish and are happy to cosset him until his owners reclaim him.
Ms Kopitzke said yesterday (Wednesday): “Let’s just say he’s a very lucky fish. It might be a while before he’s happily reunited with his owners but we don’t mind – we like having him around.”
No one was injured in the fire, which began at around 9pm, but two men aged 26 and 29 have been arrested and released on bail.
Vulcan fared better than a fellow goldfish, which perished in a 2001 fire in
Oxfordshire in which 26 people were treated for smoke inhalation. Fire chiefs blamed the blaze on the sun-magnifying qualities of the goldfish bowl.