POLICE are searching for a firebug after a number of suspicious grassfires were lit southeast and north of Melbourne.
The first fire started at 12.50pm on January 7 on Moore Rd, Sunbury, 40km northwest of the CBD.
Half an hour later a second fire occurred near the intersection of Watsons Rd and Buckland Way, Diggers Rest, 8km south of Sunbury.
On January 8 another grass fire started on Moore Rd near Baggy Green and Keepers Streets at 1.09pm.
Another fire occurred at the Sunbury Bicentennial Park in Vaughn Street, Sunbury about 2.05pm.
No houses were damaged or property lost but detectives from the Hume Crime Investigation Unit are keen to speak to anyone who may have witnessed anything suspicious in the area.
It comes as police launch another arson attack probe after two fires were believed to be deliberately lit in Melbourne's southeastern suburbs yesterday.
Authorities fear the suspicious blazes, ignited in Dandenong, are linked and are investigating how they were sparked.
The alarm was raised on the first fire just after 3pm when plumes were witnessed billowing in a small patch of parkland on Box St, Dandenong.
Minutes later, a second fire was reported near school grounds on Claret St in Doveton, about 1km away from the initial blaze.
No one was injured in either fire.
A group of five to eight males - perceived to be of African appearance, clad in jeans and T-shirts - were seen in the area shortly before the fires started.
Officers from the Dandenong Crime Investigation Unit, which is spearheading the investigation, are eager to speak to witnesses who may have noticed suspect behaviour in the area this afternoon.
It comes after police urged the community to report suspected arsonists, after 195 suspicious grass and scrub fires were recorded in Victoria in December alone.
Earlier yesterday morning, a probe was launched by homicide and arson squad detectives after a house fire in St Albans, in Melbourne's northwest claimed the life of 21-year-old university student Khaled Dalla.
Anyone with information about any of the fires is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit: www.crimestoppers.com.au
Read more on the Herald Sun.
