A shocked caravan owner is today offering a �1,000 reward after arsonists gutted her mobile home - just metres from the Suffolk Police headquarters.

SUFFOLK: A shocked caravan owner is today offering a �1,000 reward after arsonists gutted her mobile home - just metres from the Suffolk Police headquarters.

The woman, who does not want to be named, was stunned when brazen attackers set light to her caravan in the shadow of the cops' base in Martlesham Heath.

“It is slightly annoying because when you leave the headquarters you shine your lights directly on to the caravan,” she said. “

Fire crews from headquarters station in Colchester Road and another from Woodbridge were called to the blaze in Portal Avenue, Martlesham Heath, when a member of the public spotted the fire at 8.30pm on January 2.

Fire fighters used breathing apparatus to tackle the flames for 15 minutes, finally putting out the fire at 8.45pm.

The owner is also worried as she had discovered someone living in the caravan just a few days earlier.

On December 23, she had noticed a window had been smashed and someone had locked themselves in the toilet from the inside when she went to investigate.

Now she is offering the �1,000 reward to anyone who offers information that leads to the arrest of the arsonists.

She said: “We want to find who did this as they are dangerous.”

Trainer tracks left in the snow led the owner to believe it was teenagers who gutted the caravan, leaving only the frame with a sink, toilet and cooker. The quick-thinking woman has even preserved one of the footprints, which has a distinctive 'V' mark on the heel, in her freezer to help police track down the criminals.

Police are treating the incident as suspicious and are appealing for anyone who may have seen something to come forward.

A spokeswoman for Suffolk Police said the caravan was parked in a wooded area at the end of Portal Avenue which is out of sight from headquarters

If you know anything about the attack or were in the area at the time, contact Pc Richard Wright on 01473 613500 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.