An arsonist has been jailed for three years for starting a fire in a 52-bed hostel in the early hours of the morning, putting dozens of people’s lives at risk.
Jaydee Duffield, 35, was high on methamphetamine and crack cocaine when he started the fire in the Phase One hostel, in Oriental Place, Brighton.
Ben Hale, prosecuting, told Brighton Crown Court that the hostel, which is run by BHT Sussex, started filling with smoke and had to be completely evacuated between 2.30am and 3am.
The judge, Recorder John Hardy, told the former Sussex University student: “You dismantled the fire alarm in your room. As a result, the smoke was not immediately detected.
“Were it not for the staff at the hostel, the situation could have been much more serious.”
Mr Recorder Hardy said: “The smoke was so thick, it was impossible for the emergency services to see if there was anyone in there without breaking their way in.
“This is a very serious offence and it came about as a result of your addiction to drugs.”
The court heard Duffield had told a probation officer: “If it hadn’t been for the drugs then none of this would ever have happened.”
Mr Hale said that Duffield had previously damaged the hostel building and set off fire alarms, seeming to have some kind of fixation.
On the night in question in June last year, Duffield tampered with the smoke alarm in his room, disabling it, the prosecutor said.
He said: “A night warden smelt smoke and identified this as coming from Mr Duffield’s basement room. He tried to get into the room. Mr Duffield slammed the door and he wasn’t able to get into the room.
The alarm sounded and the warden went upstairs to call 999 and evacuate the building. He went back downstairs to check on Duffield but the smoke was much worse by then.
On a body-worn video, a police officer who tried to check whether Duffield was still in his room could be heard coughing.
But while police and firefighters were trying to save the man who started the blaze, Mr Hale said, “Mr Duffield had left through the rear entrance of the building.”
Emergency workers were unable to get into the room from inside the building and had to smash their way in through the window from outside.
Duffield returned to his room once the fire was out and was later arrested, with a forensic investigator concluding that he started the fire by setting light to a pair of chinos.
He initially denied arson but, on the day when he was due to go on trial, Duffield changed his plea to guilty to arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered.
A charge of arson with intent to endanger life was ordered to lie on the file.
Mr Hale said that the maximum sentence for the offence was life imprisonment although the guidelines were for a much shorter sentence.
Duffield had no previous convictions, only an old caution for harassment causing fear of violence.
Pierce Power, defending, said: “This is a serious offence.”
Mr Power said that Duffield had already spent 10 months in custody and, as well as having an addiction to drugs, he also had mental health problems, including psychosis.
While on remand at Lewes Prison, the court was told that Duffield had taken steps to deal with his drug addiction.
Mr Recorder Hardy said: “You were reckless to what happened rather than intending it … you were under the influence of drugs (and) you put many people in danger – residents and the emergency services.”
The judge said that the timing was also an aggravating feature, adding: “A number of residents would have been asleep and more vulnerable and less able to escape the danger that you caused.”
He jailed Duffield for three years and ordered him to pay a victim surcharge of £228.
