A MAN has been sentenced to six years in prison after being found guilty of arson.
Wayne Martin Brookes, of Hathaway Close, Worcester, had broken into a house on Somers' Road, Worcester, and started a fire on August 1, 2016.
The house belonged to a woman with whom Brookes had an altercation with earlier in the evening, the jury at Hereford Crown Court heard.
A neighbour raised the alarm after hearing Brookes entering the property and saw smoke.
The 33-year-old pleaded not guilty to arson but the jury unanimously found him guilty. He was sentenced on Friday.
Brookes was also sentenced to six months after pleading guilty to breach of a restraining order which will run concurrently.
DC Dave Foley from Worcester CID said: "This was a reckless act and it was only by good fortune and the quick thinking of the witness that the outcome of this incident was not more serious.
"The house was semi-detached, and although Brookes may have thought the house he set fire to was empty, he had no way of knowing whether the adjoining property was occupied or not.
"We welcome the sentence handed down to Brookes and are pleased that he won't be in a position to put other people's lives at risk for some time."
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