‘Petrol bomb’ thrown at house in petty row
A ‘PETROL bomb’ was thrown at a house following a tit-for-tat row between two rival groups, a court heard.
It was lobbed from a car at a property in Moston, prosecutors said. The flame burnt out mid-air.
Prosecutors said it was the latest incident in a dispute between two rival groups.
Thankfully in this case, in April this year, no one was hurt.
Drew McCormick, 22, who was driving the Honda car from which the beer bottle was thrown, has been jailed for 20 months in connection with the incident.
Manchester Crown Court heard the house had been damaged twice earlier that day. McCormick said the incident came after damage had been done to his home.
On April 25, McCormick drove the Honda past the property, where a group of people were congregating outside, prosecutor Antony Longworth said.
After the ‘petrol bomb’ was thrown, the car drove off, as those in the road started to throw things at the Honda.
In a basis of plea document, McCormick denied throwing the projectile himself, but said it was meant to scare rather than harm.
Rob Kearney, defending, said that McCormick’s home had been ‘exceptionally badly damaged.’ Footage of the damage had been posted online, he said. Speaking of the incident, Mr Kearney added: “It was done foolishly, perhaps in anger at what had happened to his particular house.” McCormick, of Course View, Oldham, who was previously jailed for two-and-a-half years for conspiracy to supply class A drugs, pleaded guilty to careless driving; affray, driving without insurance or a licence, and driving with false number plates on two occasions. Judge Alan Conrad QC told McCormick: “This could have been a really serious matter. But as it is, the circumstances are somewhat unusual. I accept that your intention was to frighten, rather than to cause serious harm. But the fact is that a bottle with accelerant, albeit a small quantity, was thrown from your car, albeit not by you.”
The judge also imposed a restraining order, preventing McCormick from contacting others involved for five years.
This could have been a really serious matter Judge Alan Conrad QC