‘I’VE COVERED THE HOUSE IN PETROL’
Siege man caged for 20 months
A man who doused his girlfriend and her home with petrol – sparking a threehour stand-off with police – has been jailed
Michael Webster told the woman “wake up, I’ve covered the house in petrol” as she lay asleep at her Sunderland home in the early hours of New Year’s Day.
Newcastle Crown Court heard the 47-year-old, who had hidden the victim’s phone, even smoked a cigarette as he poured the flammable liquid in every room.
The victim managed to ring for help when she found an old mobile belonging to her son.Police evacuated neighbours and put a 50- metre exclusion zone around the property at Leechmere Road, Sunderland, before officers stormed the house with riot shields and arrested Webster.
Webster, who had been staying at the victim’s home, but is originally from Wooler Crescent, Billingham, Teesside, admitted two charges of threatening to damage property and one of causing damage to property.
He met the woman on a dating site in 2015.
The relationship broke down at Christmas but Webster was allowed to stay at the woman’shouseuntilhefound somewhere else to stay.
It was in the early hours of New Year’s Day that the woman was woken with the chilling words about her home being soaked in petrol.
Prosecutor Kevin Wardlaw told the court: “She was still half asleep, but realised the defendant had poured petrol over the duvet and bed in which she was sleeping.
“He told her not to go looking for phones and said ‘you can’tcontactanyone,I’vetaken them’.”
Mr Wardlaw said the woman was released from the house but the “stand-off ” withpolice–whowereforced to evacuate neighbours and makeanexclusionzone–lasted three hours.
Mr Recorder Toby Hedworth QC said he was satisfied Webster wanted to harm just himself that night but his behaviour was “obviouslydangerous”andthatthe woman must have been “terrified”.
He sentenced Webster to 20 months behind bars.
Peter Schofield, defending, said Webster had struggled to cope with the tragedy in his life and now wants to makea“fullapology”forwhat he did.
“The defendant had poured petrol over the bed” KEVIN WARDLAW