£8m Amazon arsonist jailed for four years
A DISGRUNTLED worker who caused more than £8million of damage when he set an Amazon warehouse on fire was jailed for four years yesterday.
Adris Ali, 22, lit a stack of papers which destroyed the building and all its stock after an argument with his manager, a judge was told.
He was jailed at Stafford Crown Court for arson with intent or recklessness as to whether life was endangered.
Prosecutor Darron Whitehead said the fire on November 4 last year had damaged 613,549 units at the site, resulting in a £7.3million loss. The repair, clean-up and labour costs amounted to another £745,000.
Mr Whitehead told the court a fire alarm activation was triggered at the Amazon Fulfilment Centre in Rugeley, Staffs, just after midday.
The building was evacuated and firefighters rushed to the scene.
The court heard that a fire was burning on the third and fourth floors and internal sprinklers had been activated.
Mr Whitehead read witness statements reporting “large flames quickly growing and spreading between aisles” and “stretching from floor to ceiling”.
Sentencing Ali, Judge Michael Chambers told him: “You put a lot of people at risk and caused a lot of damage. A fire such as this puts lives at genuine risk.”
Robert Cowley, defending, said Ali’s actions were out of character and he had made an early admission of guilt.
Mr Cowley told the court: “It was a huge loss sustained, but the defendant did not intend this level of loss.”
After Ali was sentenced, Detective Constable Andrew Shorthouse of Staffordshire Police said it was fortunate the arsonist’s actions had not resulted in injuries or deaths.
He said: “This was a serious fire which has destroyed millions of pounds of stock, but we are glad that no one was harmed that day. “Ali can now reflect on his actions in prison.” Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service investigator Carl Mason said toxic smoke had engulfed the warehouse, posing a risk to others.
He said: “We welcome this sentence, which reflects the seriousness of Ali’s actions.
“This fire could have easily resulted in serious injury to members of staff and it took considerable time and effort to safely extinguish.”