Northwich man jailed after attempting to set fire to his own flat

Jordan Donnelly appeared at Chester Court on Thursday 4 July where he was sentenced to 21 months in prison.

The sentence comes after the 23-year-old of, Chapel Court, Northwich, pleaded guilty to threatening to destroy his own property, endangering life, at an earlier hearing.

The court heard that on 11 December 2023, Northwich police received a call from Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service reporting that a man had been setting fire to paper inside of his own address.

Officers were told that Donnelly had been sending numerous abusive messages to family members, threatening to blow his flat up if they did not send him money. Donnelly even went as so far as to send them videos of him setting fire to a number of items, including letters, the flat carpet, the sofa and his own underwear.

Attending the address, Donnelly was asked about the strong burning smell present, to which he responded that he had burnt some toast. However, a subsequent search of the address found numerous burnt pieces of paper scattered across the flat and fire damage to the carpet and the sofa.

There were no bread products or packaging present at the address.

Donnelly was promptly arrested and a search of his phone revealed more messages containing abusive language sent by him via Facebook Messenger.

When presented with the opportunity to defend his actions, Donnelly answered no comment to all questions directed toward him when interviewed and was subsequently charged.

Appearing at Chester Crown Court on Thursday 4 July he was sentenced to 21 months (one year and nine months) imprisonment in relation to threatening to destroy his own property, endangering life. 

Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Alli Connolly said:

"Donnelly not only caused considerable stress to his own family through the sending of numerous threatening and abusive messages, but he also caused substantial damage to his own home, which was also a housing association-owned property.

"Today's sentencing shows our continued zero tolerance against any kind of threatening behaviour, and I hope this result provides reassurance to residents that our officers will always take swift action against perpetrators who insist on making others feel unsafe."