For more than two decades Peter Zhurawel cared for his elderly mother and lived in his modest, single-storey red-brick western Sydney home.
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In recent times his neighbours have noticed his behaviour has become more and more erratic and rubbish has piled up inside, and around the Greystanes property.
In May, police were called to Peter's mother's Merrylands home when a heated argument between he and his brother Mick after over who should care for their 93-year-old mum allegedly turned physical.
And detectives are now investigating if that on-going family dispute was the catalyst for Peter allegedly attacking Merrylands police station at 7.10pm on Thursday.
The 61-year-old allegedly drove his Hyundai Getz with at least one open gas cylinder inside and parked it in the driveway of the police station. Using an accelerant he set himself alight while he sat in the vehicle.
As police raced out of the station and towards the burning car to rescue the driver the vehicle rolled down the driveway, crashing through the rollerdoor of the station's underground car park.
Officers extinguished the fire and dragged Peter, who is believed to have been unconscious, from the car.
They also removed an open gas bottle and petrol from the vehicle.
NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione on Friday praised the efforts of those officers, who initially thought they were the target of a terrorist attack. Merrylands police station had been the subject of threats before.
Mr Scipione said, however, that Thursday night's alleged attack had no terrorist or political motivation.
"There were a number of highway patrol officers there that clearly, clearly are brave, brave men," Mr Scipione said.
"There is so much that could have gone wrong, so many people could have been in serious health, including members of the community.
"There were civilians that were walking across this footpath in the footage that I've seen, not seconds before, let alone minutes before, this event."
The dispute over his mother's care was due to be heard in Fairfield Local Court on Friday during an apprehended violence order brought on by the police on Peter's behalf to allegedly protect him from his brother.
Mick Zhurawel was also due in court having been charged with assaulting his brother and resisting arrest during their late-night confrontation in May.
Both matters were instead adjourned for six weeks.
Mick on Friday said he was "not the villain" and wish he knew what was going on inside his brother's dea.
"I wish had of known that this was dwelling in his head all this time," he told Channel Nine. "It's very had, he never spoke to you and he was the sort of person where you were the enemy.,
"I'm not the villain here, the person who has to make peace is the person who is involved. He made his choices, he took the stand."
Detectives spent the day combing Peter's Carnation Street home, removing a number of items including a computer and two gas cylinders.
Assistant Commissioner Denis Clifford said they were still trying to determine a motive for Thursday nights alleged attack but confirmed they were looking at recent trouble within the family.
"We are following a line of inquiry that what occurred last night may well be family related," he said.
Mr Clifford said while Peterwas known to police there was no warning that he was a "threat to us in relation to the type of action that he allegedly engaged in last night".
"It pretty much was a matter of the car pulling up in the driveway and a very short time later fuel inside the vehicle was ignited and there was no opportunity obviously for the police to speak to him," he said.
"I don't know what leads someone to do what he did last night."
Peter on Friday remained in the burns unit of Royal North Shore Hospital under police guard where he was being treated for serious injuries.
The attack on Merrylands comes after a history of threats against the station, including a planned shooting that was allegedly uncovered late last year.
In November, a student from Arthur Phillip High School in Parramatta was charged after allegedly posting on social media, "merryland [sic] police station is next hope they all burn in hell" and "them lil piggies get shot". Arthur Phillip High is the school attended by 15-year-old Farhad Jabar, who fatally shot police accountant Curtis Cheng last October.
Mr Scipione said police had spent more than $320,000 upgrading security at Merrylands police station recently. Those upgrades included installing gates and ballistic glass, strengthening walls and installing cages around key areas at the station.