Arsonist blocked Domino's Pizza door with blazing bin in 'cry for help'
An arsonist who used a burning bin to block the exit of a Domino's Pizza shop has walked free from court.
Andrew Rawlingson started a fire in two large metal industrial bins with plastic lids outside the takeaway in Battlefield, Shrewsbury, the town's crown court heard.
The two bins were situated at the back of the store, full with boxes, when Rawlingson started the blaze and blocked the store's back doors on July 30 last year.
Prosecuting, Brian McKenna, said: “On a Sunday evening at around 10pm, CCTV shows him going to KFC next door. It then shows him leaving and going to the rear of Domino's.
“He is seen going into an area where the bins are kept and he set fire to what seems a brown paper bag with a lighter.
"He put the burning paper bag into one of the bins, looked into the other and removed some burning paper and put it into the other bin.
“He walked away and was gone for a short period of time, came back and wheeled both bins from the compound and leaves them at the rear doors, blocking the exit.”
Mr McKenna said that CCTV showed smoke coming from the bins and staff noticed smell of smoke and found the bins at the rear door.
"The staff had to go through the front door to get round the back and pull the bins away and extinguish the fire with a fire extinguisher.
Mr McKenna added: “The defendant was in same area the next night and a member of staff recognised him from the CCTV and called the police.
“He was arrested and said the CCTV looked him, but was not him.
"He had not had a problem with the Domino's store before, but had applied for a job there but had not heard anything.”
Paul Smith, mitigating, said that the defendant could just not explain why he did what he did that night.
Rawlingson, aged 30, of Sutton Road, Shrewsbury, had pleaded guilty to one count of arson at an earlier hearing.
Judge Jim Tindal sentenced him to two years in prison, suspended for two years.
He also ordered him to complete 30 days rehabilitation and 250 hours of unpaid work.
Judge Tindal said: “When I first read the papers, I thought this was a revenge attack on a manager – but you applied for a job there and got knocked back. It seems a strange cry for help.
“It was an odd act by someone who was in a strange frame of mind at the time. You are in a different place now.”
After sentencing, Judge Tindal added: “If this happens again, not only will you be going to prison, but the court will see you as a danger and you will be going to prison for a very long time.”
