The Montreal police arson squad is investigating a wave of overnight fires that appear deliberately set.
Just after 11 p.m., flames broke out inside a restaurant on Hochelaga St. near Lapointe Blvd., according to Montreal police Const. Raphael Bergeron.
Two men were seen fleeing the scene in a white vehicle after jumping through a window. Moments later the building was in flames.
"We're looking for two men probably dressed in dark clothes, that's all the info we have," Bergeron said.
An accelerant was found inside the charred restaurant. Damage to the restaurant is described as extensive.
One person was treated for smoke inhalation.
A short time later, around 1:30 a.m. in St Leonard, a fire started inside a ground-level apartment of a four-storey building near the intersection of de Nice and Jarry Sts.
Another was set inside the car of one of the building's tenants, Bergeron said.
There are no suspects in the second fire, and no one was injured.
Traces of accelerant were also found at the second crime scene, prompting the investigation to be transfered to the arson squad.
"For now, no link has been found [between the overnight fires]," Bergeron said, but investigators are considering the possibility.
Meantime, Longueuil police are investigating an overnight arson after a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a residence last night in Ste-Catherine on Brebeuf St.