A nan set fire to a bedroom in her ex’s house after he broke up with her.
Winifred Chapman started the fire on a bed in the house where she had been living just minutes after Julian Lowe gave her a letter from lawyers telling her to leave the premises.
Her ex was left with burns to his hands as he dragged the drunken 52 year old from the room. A judge at Liverpool Crown Court today told Chapman her actions could have killed someone.
READ MORE: Man guilty of murder after stabbing dad-of-two through the heart
Derek Jones, prosecuting, said Chapman and Mr Lowe had been in a relationship for a number of years and she had been living with him and his mum in their home on Coronation Road in St Helens until earlier this year.
However, in the days preceding the incident their relationship had broken down and he asked her to leave the property. The court heard she refused to do so and the atmosphere in the house became increasingly tense.
Eventually, Mr Lowe’s sister got a solicitor’s letter requesting Chapman make plans to leave and he handed this to her on the evening of January 5. Mr Lowe said he, his sister and his mum were then downstairs in the home when they heard Chapman shouting his name and went upstairs to see flames underneath the door of the bedroom where she had been staying.
She was inside having drunk heavenly and refused to leave the room. Mr Lowe eventually managed to drag her out but his hands were badly burnt in the process. The fire brigade came to the house and managed to put out the fire and Chapman was later arrested and pleaded guilty to arson.
A fire service report said the fire had been started on a bed in the room and concluded that its nature meant it had the potential to spread and endanger life.
Mr Lowe and his mother had to move out of the home for weeks after the incident.
Paul Wood, defending, said subsequent interviews and psychiatric reports suggest Chapman was in the middle of a crisis at the time of the incident, exacerbated by her drinking.
He said that since the incident she had abstained from alcohol and was deeply sorry for her behaviour. Appealing to the judge to hand her a suspended sentence, Mr Woods added that Chapman was a grandmother to two children and was a support worker for adults on the autistic spectrum. He said a prison term could prove “overwhelming” for her mental health.
Mr Woods said: “This defendant, at the time of this offence, was very vulnerable. I am not trying to diminish what she has done in any way but in my submission there is a wealth of evidence which suggests that.”
The judge, Recorder Mark Ainsworth, said the incident was “a tragic case” but that the dangerousness of Chapman’s actions meant she had to go to prison. Chapman, of Hillside Avenue, Huyton, was jailed for 20 months. A five year restraining order also prevents her from contacting Mr Lowe.
READ NEXT:
Man guilty of murder after stabbing dad-of-two through the heart
Haydn Griffiths' sister sends touching message after body found at Pier Head
Beautiful' mum found dead after leaving boyfriend's WhatsApp messages unread
Notorious gang linked to security firm targeted by EncroChat sting
Inside Curtis Warren's 'hidden millions' tied up in 'untraceable web'
