Detectives study hours of CCTV after Hibs legend’s Edinburgh pubs ‘petrol-bombed’

DETECTIVES hunting a would-be firebug who tried to torch two bars belonging to Hibs legend Paul Kane have been studying hours of surveillance camera film in a bid to identify the culprits.

Police cordon off the Four in Hand Bar on Easter Road after a fire. Pic: Contributed.

Ex-Easter Road midfielder Kane is expected to hold talks with officers based at Gayfield Square who are leading the investigation.

The 53-year-old, now a successful businessman, owns both the Four in the Hand on Easter Road and The Tor on Restalrig Road.

Kane’s bars were targeted 15 minutes apart in the early hours of Sunday, sparking a major response from the emergency services.

Cops and fire crews raced to the bars after reports that windows had been smashed and flammable liquid in a container tossed inside and set ablaze.

Kane was in London at a business event and was told of the attack by staff and was believed to be making arrangements to fly back to Edinburgh. He was unavailable for comment.

One police source said: “It doesn’t take much to put two and two together and figure out that these were deliberate acts aimed at businesses owned by the same man.

“Whether it was intended as a message to him, or someone else with a grudge, perhaps against someone who works there, we just do not know.”

The alarm was raised at the Four in the Hand at 3.40am, and at The Tor at 3.55am.

Police Scotland are treating the attacks a “linked” and a spokesperson said: “Anyone with information is asked to call Gayfield CID via 101, quoting incident number 0881 of 27 January.”

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