Wellingborough man sent to prison for setting fire to terraced house

The house in Mill Road, Wellingborough was seriously damaged by fire

A Wellingborough man has been jailed for setting fire to a house in the town.

Carl Loasby, 42, said that he had set fire to the room in the emergency accommodation in Mill Road as revenge for being evicted by his landlords. He also said he had struggled with drug addiction when he appeared before Northampton Crown Court on Friday (June 18).

The home went up in flames on February 25 this year, causing local residents to have to evacuate their homes.

Appearing before Judge Rupert Mayo, Loasby admitted one count of arson.

Judge Mayo said: "You've struggled for many, many years with addiction to class-A drugs and you have taken a combination of that and prescribed medication.

"Until you were remanded for this case, it was chaos.

"There was a high value to the property that you destroyed that had to be extensively remodelled and there was a danger to neighbouring properties.

"It meant people couldn't use the home for emergency accommodation."

Loasby was sentenced to two years and six months in prison. He will serve half in custody and half on licence in the community.