Ice cream man’s vans ‘torched by arsonists in summer turf war feud’

An ice cream man claims his two vans were torched by arsonists as part of a bitter summer holidays turf war.

Tony Del Busso says rival sellers targeted his family-run business in an ongoing row over pitches.

The 50-year-old, known as Mr Cool, says four other businesses operate in his home town of Hinckley, Leics.

Tony’s Mr Cool and Super Whippy vans went up in flames on the driveway of his family home on Thursday.

The fire spread to his house, destroying their garage and bedroom and causing £70,000 worth of damage.

Tony and his wife Yvonne have been running the business for eight years, taking over from his ice cream seller dad.

He said: “It’s a long-running family-run business and nothing like this has happened before.

“We suspect because of the fact they targeted two ice cream vans, it was something to do with competitors stopping us from trading.

“There are numerous rivals, around three of four of them working on the same patch, but its never comes to aggression.

“Nine times out of ten you just accept somebody else got there first.

"In busy periods it can get a bit heated but we rarely clash with each other.