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Oritse Williams house fire being treated as ‘suspicious’ days after he’s cleared of rape


Oritse’s house went up in flames (Picture: London Fire Brigade)

The fire at Oritse Williams’ home is being treated as ‘suspicious’.

The £3 million house in Croydon went up in flames on Tuesday, 4 June, a week after the former JLS star was found not guilty of rape.

Now, a Metropolitan Police spokesperson has confirmed that the blaze is being treated as suspicious as investigations get underway.

A statement given to Metro.co.uk read: ‘Police were called at 16:39hrs on Tuesday, 4 June following reports of a fire at a residential address in Spout Hill, Croydon.

‘Officers attended with London Fire Brigade. There were no reported injuries. There have been no arrests.

‘At this stage, the incident is being treated as suspicious. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

‘Enquiries continue, led by the South Area Command Unit CID.’

The former JLS star was cleared of rape last week (Picture: Joe Giddens/PA)
Police are treating the fire as suspicious (Picture: London Fire Brigade)

Up to 70 firefighters fought the blaze for the three hours while it ravaged the first and second floors of the detached three-storey, six bedroom property.

The property has been empty since it went on the market in January and no-one was hurt in the incident.

It has been a week since a jury cleared the musician of raping a 20-year-old woman at a Wolverhampton hotel in December 2016.

Oritse, 32, pleaded not guilty while he was accused of behaving like a ‘sexual predator’ during the week-long trial.

He claimed a consensual sexual encounter had taken place with the complainant and argued that he was being ‘taken advantage of’ because of his boyband fame.

When he was cleared last Tuesday, Oritse’s bandmate Marvin Humes and his wife Rochelle were among the first stars to praise him for his conduct throughout ‘three years of hell’.

Oritse put the house on the market in January (Picture: SWNS)
Nobody has been arrested as of yet (Picture: London Fire Brigade)

In a tribute, Marvin wrote: ‘No-one will ever know or imagine what he’s been through… ‘I’m just so proud of the way he conducted himself during what has been the most awful time..he is so strong and I know he can’t wait to start his life again now..We love you O.’

Marvin’s wife Rochelle called Oritse her ‘brother’, saying he was ‘one of the kindest, most gentle, thoughtful men’ she knew.

Fellow popstar Alexandra Burke also called Oritse a ‘gentleman’ who ‘deserved nothing but happiness.’

Oritse tried to list his six-bedroom Croydon home back in January shortly before the court case was due to take place.

He was prepared to make a £1.25 million loss on the home he bought with his then-girlfriend AJ Azari for £3million, five years ago.

The house, which features a huge kitchen, a spacious living room and an outdoor swimming pool, fell into disrepair after the X Factor star faced charges in 2018.

The home was previously owned by comedian Ronnie Corbett.

Metro.co.uk has contacted Williams’ reps for comment.



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