Jeweller's wife killed in house fire may have been victim of revenge gang

Hameeda Begum, 71, was trapped inside her home after a wheelie bin was apparently pushed against the front door and set alight on Monday night.

Firemen rescued her and she was taken to hospital, but she died from her injuries.

Her daughter and five-year-old granddaughter were also caught in the fire and are in a serious condition in hospital.

Hameeda Begum, pictured with her son Qaisar, died in an arson attack at her home in Bolton, Lancs.

In 2005, Mrs Begum's husband, jeweller Chifhty Mumtaz, 73, spoke out after five robbers from the Gooch Close mob in Moss Side, Manchester, raided his store.

Wearing masks and carrying hammers, they burst into the shop in Great Lever, Bolton, and smashed display cabinets before grabbing Mr Mumtaz.

But he and his son, Qaisar, 29, fought back. The gang fled with about £10,000 of jewellery.

Hameeda's daughter Saima Mumtaz and granddaughter Alana Mian Mumtaz are in a serious condition in hospital

Mr Mumtaz told police how he used a plastic mallet from behind the counter to hit one of the robbers on the head.

And in January 2007, leading figures from the mob were jailed for a series of robberies, including the raid on the jeweller's, and other offences including murder and blackmail.

Police are investigating the death of a jeweller's wife in a suspected arson attack

Last night, fire investigators were attempting to determine the cause of the fire which gutted the terraced house.

Councillor Mohammed Ayub, a family friend, said: 'The police have said that they are not yet sure if it was arson but they are making enquiries and have told us to keep an open mind.'

Last night a police spokesman said: 'Obviously we will be looking at every possible line of inquiry but at this stage we are not linking them. The blaze is being treated as suspicious and has not been confirmed as arson yet.'

Mr Mumtaz was able to escape the house. Firemen rescued his wife, their daughter Saima Main, 24, and granddaughter Alana Main. Three crew were injured in the blaze.

The house where Hameeda Begum died

Last year, at Manchester Crown Court, gang member Errol Reynolds, 20, was jailed for 30 years for the murder of Ramone Cumberbatch, 18, a rival gang member who was shot dead, in September 2005. He was sentenced to 45 months for robbery.

Laine Williams, 22, was jailed for nine years for the attempted murder of another man and ten years for robbery. Paul Dunn, 18, and Reece Ming, also 18, each admitted robbery. Dunn got eight years, while Ming was given an indefinite sentence with a minimum recommendation he serve five years.

Reynolds's brother, Malachi Reynolds, 27, was jailed for seven years this month, for blackmailing a mother at gunpoint.