The arsonist behind the major fire at Birmingham wholesale market has been told there is “no doubt” he will face jail.
Stephen Wilkinson was charged last year with arson with reckless intent by Birmingham magistrates court. In a hearing at the city’s crown court this week, Judge Kirstie Montgomery told Wilkinson that “people who set fires are inherently dangerous. They show a total disregard for the safety of others,” the Birmingham Mail reported.
Prosecutor Julie Warburton told the court CCTV showed Wilkinson going into one of the adjoining units and said he was the only person in the area at the time, the Mail said.
The fire, which ripped through three units at the wholesale market at Digbeth, caused thousands of pound of damage.
According to the Birmingham Mail, Montgomery said: “You set fire to Birmingham’s indoor markets out of some petty revenge, or in the course of some minor disagreement. You should have and could have foreseen it raging out of control.”
