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A home rented by a man charged with the manslaughter of Aboriginal teenager Elijah Doughty has been deliberately torched by arsonists in Western Australia's Goldfields.
The house in South Kalgoorlie was set on fire about 6:30pm on Thursday, with firefighters saying it was lit on purpose.
The 55-year-old man charged with killing Elijah had previously rented and lived at the property, police have confirmed.
Damage to the house has been estimated at $250,000.
Elijah, 14, died more than two weeks ago after he was allegedly struck by the driver of a ute while riding a motorcycle, which police have alleged was stolen.
The teenager's death sparked a riot outside Kalgoorlie courthouse and concerns about racism, with many angry that the charge against the accused was not more serious.
About 300 people pelted police with bottles and rocks, and damaged five police cars and one local business. Seven people were later charged.
In response to the house fire, a police guard was posted outside the property overnight pending an investigation by the Arson Squad.
"The house and contents have been completely destroyed," Goldfields-Esperance Superintendent Darryl Gaunt told ABC Local Radio.
"We are following a number of leads, but nothing firm at this stage ... no arrests have been made.
"The Arson Squad is coming up today as well with fire investigators, so we'll find out a lot more when they've had a chance to look at the scene."
Elijah's alleged manslaughter coincided with frustration about Indigenous teenage crime in Kalgoorlie, and led to claims that community Facebook pages had become forums for racist abuse.
It also sparked calls from Aboriginal elders for change to help improve the outlook of young people.
Police admitted there was still a lot of tension in Kalgoorlie, and urged people to keep calm while the fire was investigated.
"Feel free to have an opinion, but just temper it with the facts," Superintendent Gaunt said.
"Let us do our job, don't jump to conclusions, don't speculate on who's involved in these things. Just let us go through the process.
"The last thing we need is those other distractions, and there is a lot of them at the moment particularly on social media."
The man accused of Elijah's manslaughter remains in police custody after appearing in court in Perth, with police saying the charges against him could be upgraded.
His identity has been suppressed by the court.
Police have urged anyone with information about the fire to contact Crimestoppers.
Topics: fires, police, murder-and-manslaughter, kalgoorlie-6430, wa
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