A man threatened to set himself on fire and burn down the hotel where he was living when told he had to leave, a court has heard.
When police found Abdalla Barka outside the seafront guesthouse he was carrying a bottle of petrol and boxes of matches. He later told police he had planned to kill himself and he did not think the fire would spread to the rest of the hotel because there was a fire extinguisher outside his room.
The defendant's advocate told Swansea Crown Court his client had been acting out of "desperation and frustration" and realised he should have reacted differently to the news that he had to leave the property.
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Georgia Donohue, prosecuting, said that on the morning of March 10 this year, an employee of Swansea Housing Options had a meeting with Barka during which the defendant was told he had to leave Leonardo's guesthouse, a hotel where he had lived for around 11 months.
She said Barka became "extremely angry" at the news and claimed he was being evicted for no reason, and he then threatened to "burn himself and burn the building". The court heard the housing officer checked with the Arabic interpreter who was assisting with the meeting, and it was confirmed that those were the words the defendant had used.
Miss Donohue said the threats were reported to the police, and officers alerted the owner of the Oystermouth Road guesthouse to what had been said before they went to the scene. When officers arrived, they found the owner had locked the front door, and shortly afterwards Barka arrived - he was stopped and searched and officers found a 500ml water bottle containing a yellow liquid "which smelled strongly of accelerant" and several boxes of matches. Police also found a knife in his jacket pocket.
In his subsequent interview 42-year-old Barka said he had only wanted to kill himself, and that he knew there was a fire extinguisher outside his room and didn't think any fire would have spread. He also said he had got the petrol from the mosque and it could be returned. In regard to the knife, the defendant said he had been using it earlier that day to "make cheese" and had simply put it in his pocket and had forgotten about it.
In an impact statement from the guesthouse owner which was read to the court she said she had been "terrified" when told of the threats and had burst into tears. She said she was shocked Barka had made the threats as there had never been any problems between them.
The prosecutor told the court that at the time of the incident there had been 14 other residents living in the hotel.
Abdalla Sasi Ali Barka, of Oystermouth Road, Swansea, had previously pleaded guilty to making threats to damage or destory property, possessing articles with intent to destroy property, and possession of a bladed article, when he appeared in the dock for sentencing. He has no previous convictions.
Andrew Evans, for Barka, said the defendant had been at a loss to explain why he was being asked to the leave the guesthouse - a property at which he had lived without any issues - and in an act of "desperation and frustration" had acted in the way the court had heard about. He said Barka accepted he should have handled the situation in a more calm manner and that his conduct was a "massive over-reaction" to events which not only had led to the loss of his good character but could have an impact going forward "in terms of potential employment and other aspects of his life".
Recorder Richard Kember said the appropriate sentence after trial on the guidelines was one of 15 months in prison - with the required one-third discount for the guilty pleas that was reduced to 10 months. Barka will serve up to half that period in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community.
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