A fire has killed 10 members of the same family, including five children, at a home in Lima, Peru's capital, in what police are investigating as a possible arson attack linked to extortion demands. The blaze tore through a property in the southern La Victoria district in the early hours of Wednesday, with local media reporting the family had been threatened over extortion payments related to their mattress-making business and electric motorcycles.

Police said the fire began at around 03:00 local time when unidentified individuals reportedly set alight motorcycles parked outside, with flames spreading rapidly through flammable mattress-making materials inside. Of the 17 family members present at the time, seven managed to escape and two were injured, while the ten who died included five children aged three to 15 and four adults aged 29 to 72, plus one further adult victim. Police said the victims' bodies were burned beyond recognition, and the Peruvian National Police described the tragedy as plunging the nation into mourning.