Jailed: Arsonist who used electric toaster used to start blaze at ex's house in Shifnal
A man who used an electric toaster to start a fire at his ex-girlfriend's house while she was asleep has been jailed.
The smoke alarm going off at the two-bedroom terrace property in Botfield Road, Shifnal, alerted the victim and enabled her to escape the blaze and neighbours had to be evacuated.
Ian Rowley, 52, was jailed having admitted a charge of arson and being reckless as to whether life was endangered.
Rowley, an HGV driver, was sentenced to three years and nine months custody and told by Recorder Ben Nicholls he was fortunate not to be facing a life sentence.
"Most deaths in fires are from smoke inhalation and having seen the smoke damage in this case had it not been that the victim was woken she would probably have died in the fire," he said.
Recorder Nicholls said that Rowley's inability to cope following the inevitable breakdown of the relationship, bearing in mind the disparity in age, was no justification for committing the arson offence.
Rowley, of Wheatfield Drive, Shifnal, was also made the subject of an indefinite restraining order to have no contact directly or indirectly with the victim. He had denied a charge of harassment relating to the victim which Recorder Nicholls ordered to lie on the file.
Shrewsbury Crown Court heard that he had a previous conviction for common assault on his ex-wife in 2010.
Mr Mohammed Hafeez, prosecuting, said that Rowley was 30 years older than his victim, who was 18 when the relationship started in 2010. By December last year the relationship had ended and on New Year's Eve the victim had moved into the terraced property in Botfied Road.
In the early hours of January 6 this year she had returned home from work and was asleep when Rowley broke into the house through a kitchen window. "He put paper and cardboard into the toaster and covered it with a tea towel and left it switched on causing the subsequent fire," he said.
Mr Hafeez said that Rowley had initially denied being involved but he was linked to the arson when broken glass was found on his shoes, a foot print from a Puma trainer was found in the kitchen, his clothes smelt of smoke and various text messages were recovered from his mobile phone.
Mr Ian Windridge, for Rowley, said his client cannot say why he committed the offence but was in an emotional state.
