PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The fury of a scorned man led him to throw a petrol bomb at the car of his wife's boyfriend, causing a fire which led to an online frenzy by people who thought it was a bomb blast.

This foolish act landed the man in trouble with the law.

Police picked up the suspect, in his mid-20s, late Monday (Dec 21) night. He is expected to be remanded on Tuesday to assist police in the probe of causing mischief.

Earlier in the day, the suspect, who was going through a divorce, showed up at a car park near where his wife's boyfriend works.

Petaling Jaya police chief Mohd Zani Che Din said the 20-year-old boyfriend was walking towards his car when the husband, who was riding a motorcycle, approached him at about 1.30pm.

"The boyfriend realised the man was about to throw the bottle at the car, which had the door open. The woman was inside the car.

"She managed to jump out before the car went up in flames," said ACP Zani.

Three explosions were heard and the husband fled the scene, leaving behind his slippers and a helmet.

"The fire quickly spread to five other cars. It grew too big for some of the passers-by to put out," he said.

The explosions sparked rumours that a bomb had been set off and pictures of the fire went viral on WhatsApp.

To quell the speculation, Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar sent out a tweet to make it clear that there was no bomb.

"There was no bomb explosion. @PDRMsia is investigating a case of mischief by fire," he posted, saying that someone had set a car ablaze at the parking lot.

A spokesman for the Fire and Rescue Department said they arrived at the scene a few minutes after receiving a distress call from an eyewitness.

"We took about half an hour to extinguish the flames. Four cars were badly damaged, while two others were 20 per cent burnt," he said.