YouTuber Spanian’s foray into the Melbourne food scene seems to have ruffled a few feathers with one of his kebab trucks targeted by arsonists.
Firefighters were called to Bell Street in Preston about 4am on Saturday following reports the truck had been set alight using flammable liquid.
The blaze was extinguished and the damage confined to the trailer, which had been moved to the site in early May ahead of a grand opening on May 16, which Spanian, 38, said was ‘the biggest turnout we’ve ever had’.
The ex-career criminal, turned filmmaker and entrepreneur – whose name is actually Anthony Lees – launched Spanian’s kebabs in Sydney which has since expanded to multiple locations.
In a video shared to his social media on Saturday, he seemed unfazed by the attack.
‘They burnt the front wall, but it’s not an issue, there’s another truck already on the way,’ he said. ‘We’ve got a factory of trucks, we’ll get this one rewrapped.’
He then explained it is locals, not him, who owns the trucks.
‘I just want to get that out there. The trucks are part of your community, and those people from your community save up for these trucks and they have to pay for it. They’re your people,’ he said.
Spanian took to social media on Saturday after an arson attack on his Melbourne food truck
Spanian said he has a ‘factory’ making the trucks and shared a vide of a new one already on its way to a Melbourne location to replace one targeted by arsonists
He then changed the subject to his successful Melbourne launch and suggested competitors might have been responsible.
‘I thought Spanian’s Kebabs were shit. Well guess whose kebabs they’re trying to burn down?,’ he said.
‘Guess who’s got the best kebabs in Australia? Melbourne will be back open soon.’
The Sydneysider has built a large online fanbase following a rocky start in life.
Spanian spent a total of 13 years in prison before the age of 30 for various offences including a ram raid on an ATM, assaults and drug distribution.
After his release, he briefly tried his hand at a career as a drill rapper before finding a large audience posting videos on YouTube.
He released an autobiography in 2021, but it was quickly dropped by his publisher over controversial comments he made about the LGBTQI+ World Pride events, claiming that an agenda was being pushed to children.
