Conspiracy claim debunked after arson rumours swirl

Claims made on social media by a right-wing conspiracy theorist concerning an alleged arson attack in south Wales have been debunked by police.

Alex Jones said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that a fire at a chapel in Port Talbot town centre was started by two “Pakistani invaders”.

But South Wales Police were quick to label this as “false information” and arrested two teenagers from the area days after the attack.

Mr Jones’ post has so far been viewed 1.6m times along with thousands of reposts and reactions.

More than 20 firefighters were sent to Bethany English Calvinistic Methodist Chapel last Thursday.

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said crews stayed at the scene until the early hours of Friday to monitor the building.

Three days after the incident, Mr Jones claimed that Christianity was “under attack” as a result of the fire.

He added that the “thought police” would make arrests if anyone complained about the nature of his accusations.

In a direct response to the claims, South Wales Police said on X: “This is completely false information. Two teenagers, both from Neath Port Talbot, have been arrested on suspicion of arson in connection with this incident.”

The pair arrested were a 14-year-old boy from Sandfields and a 15-year-old boy from Bryn.