Accused ‘in hotel smoking cigarettes’

Men deny starting fire which destroyed former Waverley Hotel

Two Perth men have denied starting the fire that badly damaged the former Waverley hotel owned by businesswoman Ann Gloag.

The trial of James McCrory, 20, of Greyfriars Hostel, and Liam Gall, 18, of Ochil Cottage, both Perth, is taking place at Perth Sheriff Court.

The trial heard from Detective Sergeant Keith Duncan, 36, based at Perth Police HQ, who read from a transcript of an interview with Gall that the accused told him he and McCrory were inside the hotel smoking cigarettes, which they then “threw away” on some napkins in a “livingroom” area.

Mr Duncan said Gall had told officers he then left the building to “watch smoke” from the AK Bell Library across the road around 9.30pm.

The detective told the court Gall had said “we didn’t mean to set anything on fire”.

The court earlier heard from Michael Rumgay, 40, watch manager with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in Perth, who said firefighters could see smoke from their fire station rise from the former hotel when they were first notified of the incident at 9.39pm.

He told depute fiscal Sue Ruta a total of five fire engines ended up dealing with the blaze and this included units sent from Dundee and Dunkeld.

Following submissions from defence solicitors Cheryl McKnight and Rosie Scott, Sheriff Gillian Wade agreed there was no case to answer for the pair against a charge they wilfully set fire to pieces of paper and other flammable materials on the hotel’s second floor, whereby the fire took effect and the hotel and its contents were damaged.

The pair face an amended alternative charge that they culpably and recklessly set fire to pieces of paper, furniture and other flammable items in a second-floor room, causing a fire that damaged the hotel and its contents. Both deny the charge. Meanwhile, a fire investigations officer said “it was unlikely” a discarded cigarette led to the fire.

Simon Guyan, 46, a watch manager with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, was giving evidence at the trial.

He told the court he had identified former private staff living quarters on the second floor as the “room of origin” of the blaze at the derelict hotel on November 17 2015.

Mr Guyan said an investigations team that included a police crime scene manager and forensic chemist observed the “fire had spread rapidly”.

He concluded it had been started deliberately, probably by a “naked flame” used on some materials, which led to a hole in the room’s floor.

“It is unlikely this fire was caused by a cigarette,” he said.

The trial, heard before a jury and Sheriff Wade, continues.

It is unlikely this fire was caused by a cigarette