An arsonist has been jailed after setting fire to a shop full of customers.
Steven Caldwell, 49, was caught setting bags of charcoal alight inside a Nisa convenience store last May. He made his way to the back right corner of the store with a lighter in his hand and crouched down before lighting the charcoal bags, according to police.
CCTV caught him smirking at the security camera in the store before throwing paper onto the charcoal and fleeing the shop. Shopkeepers in the store in Grimsby were alerted to the fires after a customer reported smelling burning.
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Caldwell, of Tunnard Street in the town, was charged with arson following the incident and appeared at Grimsby Crown Court for sentencing on Friday, June 23. Speaking after the sentencing, DC Andrew Taylor said: “Luckily staff were promptly alerted to the fire and were able to extinguish it before anybody was seriously injured.
“This was a reckless attack and I hope that the outcome of the court case provides members of the community with the reassurance that we are there, in your communities, to support and take swift and positive action against those responsible for serious offences and bring them to justice."
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