A teenager who started a flat fire so severe that it melted radiators was caught on camera fleeing the scene of the crime.
Aaron-James Smart, now 20, broke into then set fire to a one-bedroom flat on High Street in Fraserburgh which prompted the block of flats to be evacuated.
Thankfully, one quick-thinking neighbour who heard the banging and smashing of intruders swiftly alerted emergency services – who managed to stop the fire from spreading.
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard the incident took place just before 9am on May 7 2020 after Smart gained access to the unlocked communal door and forced entry into the empty third-floor flat.
Fiscal depute Brian Young said a neighbour heard male voices shouting and the sound of glass breaking and items being thrown around.
“After a few minutes, the witness heard the sound of people running out of the locus and heard one of the voices say something similar to ‘You’ve lit the flat on fire’,” Mr Young said.
“At this time the witness went to check on the damage to the front door of the locus and saw clouds of black smoke coming from within.”
The neighbour rang 999 and evacuated his own flat.
Meanwhile, police on mobile patrol spotted black smoke coming from a window.
“Police thereafter assisted in evacuating the remaining residents from the building, forcing entry to properties where necessary to ensure they were empty and created a cordon to allow emergency services access to the flat,” the court heard.
Fire crews arrived 10 minutes later and found the building “filled with thick smoke” making it difficult for firefighters to see in front of them.
Heat would have been between 600-700C
After extinguishing the flames and waiting for the smoke to clear, the full extent of the blaze was visible to firefighters.
Mr Young said: “Fire officers observed burnt clothes, a melted clothes horse and the mattress of the bed which was completely charred and partially burnt through to the springs.
“The skirtings and radiator had been charred and melted. The whole flat was smoke logged however only the bedroom had fire damage.”
The Watch Commander’s initial investigation deemed the fire to be wilful as there was no obvious cause given all electrical sockets and heaters were turned off and there was no mains gas supply.
He estimated that the heat would have been between 600-700C when the firefighters first attended.
Captured on CCTV fleeing scene
Security camera footage showed Smart leave an address on the town’s Cross Street, pull his hood up and enter the block of flats where the fire started at 8.49 am.
He is seen leaving again eight minutes later and breaking into a run heading towards and re-entering the address at Cross Street.
Ten minutes later the footage shows smoke billowing from the window of the High Street flat.
At around 9.15am police had cause to detain Smart but during that attempt, he threw insults at them.
Officers originally let him go on his way despite the abuse and his being in possession of a lighter, as they had to attend to the ongoing fire incident.
They traced him again four hours later, at Fraserburgh Harbour, where he was arrested.
‘He is a very different man now’
Smart admitted charges of malicious mischief, wilful fire-raising and racially aggravated threatening or abusive behaviour.
His defence agent Iain Hingston said: “It’s fortunate that the brave members of the services referred to were able to put out this fire and stop further spreading.”
He said his client was 17 at the time and has since spent a lot of time “righting his wrongs” and adopting a more “pro-social attitude”.
“He is in the middle of an apprenticeship,” the solicitor added. “He had considerable issues with the use of controlled drugs at the time. He desists from that side of behaviour now. He is very different from the young man he was three years ago.”
Someone could have been killed
Sheriff Ian Wallace, who was shown 42 photographs of the fire-damaged flat taken by crime scene examiners, told Smart: “You caused significant damage by your intentional actions and you could have caused even the death of any number of individuals by your actions.”
However, he also said he took into account Smart’s age, remorse and relative lack of previous convictions.
He handed Smart, of Pitsligo Street, Rosehearty, 18 months of supervision and 300 hours of unpaid work as a direct alternative to custody.
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