Paignton busker convicted of arson charge

A judge has ordered a psychiatric report on a mental patient who set fire to his flat.

Busker Samuel Rodriques was set up in the flat in Paignton, Devon, by his psychiatric key worker but started behaving bizarrely in the days before the blaze.

The 42-year-old amateur guitarist suffered an injured ankle when he leapt from the first floor of the flat in Bishops Place to escape the flames.

Neighbours had become alarmed about him because he burned a £20 note, wanted to install a woodburner in his bathroom and a patio heater in his lounge.

Firefighters needed to use breathing apparatus to control the fire, which was fuelled by a can of petrol and a large tub of cooking fat which Rodriques had bought from a nearby kebab shop.

Rodriques denied arson being reckless whether life was endangered but was found guilty by a jury at Exeter Crown Court.

Judge Phillip Wassall adjourned the case for sentence and called for a psychiatric and probation reports.

The jury had heard how Rodriques jumped from his flat and then rang the bells of his fellow residents to alert them and enable them to escape. He claimed intruders broke into his flat while he was out and turned it into a firetrap with furniture piled up and accelerants spread around the floor, which ignited after he dropped a cigarette.