Carp wars: British anglers' cars are torched 'by jealous French rivals' after 60lb catch

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British anglers have been subjected to a terrifying campaign of intimidation in France by local fishermen jealous of their success.

In the latest attack, two cars were torched under cover of darkness while their owners were on a boat in the middle of a lake.

Darrell Peck and Gary Hood were fishing for carp when they heard a huge explosion and saw flames shooting into the sky. When they reached land, they found both vehicles had been destroyed, along with all their personal belongings, including passports.

In the latest attack by 'jealous French fishermen', two cars (pictured) were torched under cover of darkness while their owners were fishing for carp on a boat in the middle of a lake

It was the most serious in a string of incidents, which have included tyre-slashing, robbery and targeted acts of vandalism.

The pair were on a six-week trip to the vast Lac d'Orient, which is in a forest area near Troyes, about 100 miles south-east of Paris. The 2,300-acre reservoir is a favourite spot for carp fishing, with Mr Peck, from Chelmsford, Essex, landing a massive 60lb fish during his trip.

The 33-year-old said the arson attack took place shortly before dawn as he struggled to haul a 50lb carp into his dinghy.

'All of a sudden I heard an explosion. I looked around in the direction of where the cars were parked to see flashes of light coming up into the sky. I've got this 50-pounder on the end of the rod and I thought, that's where I'm parked!'

'It turns out that my car and Gary's had been burned to the ground, with nothing left,' he said in an online video. If it is jealous French anglers, that's sad; that's a real shame.'

The incident has echoes of the attack on a British fishing boat by French rivals in the Channel last week in the so-called 'scallop wars'. 

Darrell Peck (pictured) and Gary Hood were fishing for carp when they heard a huge explosion and saw flames shooting into the sky.

Police in Troyes said there had been several 'unpleasant incidents' targeting foreign fishermen, and Thom Airs, editor of UK Carp magazine, said: 'Darrell was fishing in public waters but the French are very protective of them, so the locals may have been riled. 

'The British operate a 'catch and release' policy, putting the carp straight back in the lake once it's been weighed and photographed, but there is a legacy of resentment.'

Zenon Bojko, whose Essex-based travel company has run in fishing trips to France, said: 'I've had my tyres slashed on a regular basis and the back window of my van cut out. It's petty jealousy.

'The fact is that we catch their fish and we're better at it than them. I've given up going over there, there's just too much aggro.'

There have been no arrests.