Four people accuse undercover officer of arson attack on Debenhams store

Bob Lambert is a prominent figure in the scandal surrounding the police’s use of undercover officers to spy on tens of thousands of political activists between 1968 and 2010. Photograph: Unknown

Four witnesses have testified at a public inquiry that an undercover police officer carried out an arson attack on a well-known high street department store while pretending to be an ardent animal rights campaigner.

Their testimony directly contradicts consistent denials by the undercover officer Bob Lambert, who says he did not set fire to a London branch of Debenhams, causing damage totalling £340,000.