A 61-year-old man who set fire to a front door as a Clifton family slept upstairs has been jailed for four years.
Andrew Grant crept up to the semi-detached property in the early hours of New Year’s Day and set fire to a Christmas decoration attached to the front door.
The gold bow was set alight from the bottom and the fire extended up the bow before extinguishing itself out.
The fire caused significant damage to the front door but, thankfully, did not spread.
Nottingham Crown Court heard a mother and her two sons were asleep at the time of the incident, which happened in Rivergreen, Clifton at around 4 am on 1 January 2023.
Three hours later, Grant – who’d been drinking heavily – rang 999 and confessed to his actions.
Officers arrived and arrested him.
During his initial police interview, he changed his story and told officers he called 999 after spotting the fire, but insisted he didn’t start it.
Detectives examined his mobile phone and uncovered a string of damning messages that contained words such as “I’ll set fire to them”, “I’ll scare him” and “Leave it to me”.
The investigation found Grant was an acquaintance of someone who disliked a man staying with the mother and two sons.
Grant, of Glapton Lane, Clifton, went on to plead guilty to arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered. He appeared at Nottingham Crown Court on Friday (17 November) and was jailed for four years.
He was also made subject to an indefinite restraining order.
Following the sentencing, Inspector Stephen Dalby, of Nottinghamshire Police, said:
“This was an extremely reckless crime and it was only through good fortune that no-one was injured or worse.
“It had a severe impact on the family concerned and I hope they can take some comfort in knowing the person responsible is now behind bars.
“Grant’s actions were particularly deplorable as he lives only a mile away from where a mother and two children were killed in an arson attack on their home, just six weeks prior to this incident.
“Those tragic murders attracted global media coverage and provided a stark reminder about the potential consequences of setting fire to people’s homes.
“Despite this, Grant still decided to commit arson and it beggars belief that he could be so reckless.
“I hope he uses his time in prison to reflect long and hard about what he did and leads a law-abiding lifestyle once he’s released.”
