Ambernath: A resident of an Ambernath housing complex is accused of setting on fire two cars and three two-wheelers early on Thursday following a dispute over parking space last week. An FIR has been lodged.Another resident’s two-wheeler is suspected to have been the target of the attack but other vehicles near it also caught fire.Police sources said the alleged arsonist, Ritu Dinesh Karira, who lives in Dipti Sky City in Palegaon, picked up arguments with another resident, Sunny Ram Singhani (34), last week over what she claimed was encroachment of her usual parking spot. Singhani, though, pointed out that there are no fixed parking slots for residents. “People usually park wherever space is available. I had a minor dispute with her over parking. I never imagined that she would take such an extreme step over such a small issue,” he said.Preliminary investigations show that Karira was livid over the purported loss of space. Police said a little after 2am on Thursday, residents were awakened by loud popping sounds and thick smoke rising from the parking area. By the time they rushed downstairs, flames had engulfed multiple vehicles parked inside the premises of the housing society. Fire brigade personnel reached the spot and brought the blaze under control. However, five vehicles—two cars and three two-wheelers, including Singhani’s, were gutted. The vehicles’ owners have demanded compensation for the damage.Singhani, based on whose complaint the FIR was filed, told TOI that suspicion fell on Karira after residents reviewed the building’s CCTV footage. “In the footage, the woman with whom I had recently argued over parking space can be seen carrying a bottle believed to contain petrol and moving towards my two-wheeler. Shortly thereafter, the fire broke out,” he alleged.Ambernath police said charges of mischief by fire and damage to property under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita have been invoked against Karira. “Further investigation is underway,” a police officer said.