A fire that tore through a family home in Lima, Peru, in the early hours of Wednesday morning has killed ten people, including five young children, with police investigating whether the blaze was deliberately started as part of an extortion scheme. Seven other family members managed to escape the building, which was engulfed in flames at around 03:00 local time.

The fire broke out in the La Victoria district, a densely populated area in southern Lima, Peru's sprawling capital. Seventeen members of the same family were inside the property at the time. The five children who died were aged three, six, six, eight and fifteen. The four adults whose ages were confirmed were 29, 35, 42 and 72 years old, with a fifth adult victim whose age was not disclosed. Two people were also reported injured. General Oscar Arriola of the Peruvian National Police said the bodies were burned beyond recognition.

The family earned their living manufacturing and selling mattresses from the property, which was a wooden self-built structure, and also owned electric motorcycles. According to neighbours, an unidentified individual set fire to motorcycles parked outside the entrance to the building. Large quantities of mattress-making materials were stacked near the doorway, and the highly flammable goods caused the fire to spread with devastating speed. Police confirmed they are investigating reports that the family had previously received threats and demands for extortion payments, pointing to a possible targeted attack.

The tragedy has prompted an outpouring of grief across the country. "Today, all of Peru falls silent in the face of a tragedy that plunges our nation into mourning," the Peruvian National Police said in a formal statement.

The case highlights the vulnerability of small, informal businesses to criminal extortion networks, a persistent problem in several Latin American cities. Authorities have not yet announced any arrests in connection with the suspected arson, and the investigation is ongoing.