A MAN has been sentenced to more than two years in prison after a 16-hour ordeal that culminated in him setting fire to his mother’s bedroom door.

Jack Bell, 32, was sentenced for arson, reckless as to the endangerment of life at Cardiff Crown Court, on Tuesday, February 13.

The incident began in the early hours of Sunday, September 3, 2023, when at around 2am, Bell returned to the house he lived in with his mother in Clifton Road, Abergavenny, and told her he had taken Valium.

His mum, Pauline Powell, went upstairs while Bell attempted to “educate” her about drugs. She asked him to leave and eventually ran out of the house, fearful her son may follow and hurt her.

Just before 4am, a neighbour heard Bell say: “I’m gonna f***ing burn it down”.

Ms Powell stayed on the street for around an hour before walking to a friend’s house. She returned around 6am, barricaded her bedroom door with a large wardrobe and fell asleep.

At around 10.30am, she spotted items on the stairs that appeared to have been placed to obstruct her path.

A few minutes later, Ms Powell smelled smoke. She contemplated jumping from the window and contacted the fire service, who arrived around 20 minutes later and helped her out of the house.

By the time the firefighters arrived, her son had already left the house.

'No excuses'

In an emotional victim statement, Ms Powell said her son’s “whole existence changed” after he started using drugs.

His behaviour, she said, gave her difficulty sleeping and amounted to financial, physical and emotional abuse. 

Despite the traumatic effects of the incident, Ms Powell said she did not want the court to issue a restraining order against her son and hoped he would get help to overcome his relationship with drugs.

Stephen Thomas, in defence, said Bell made “no excuses” for his part in the terrifying ordeal and had entered a guilty plea.

“He is deeply grateful that the consequences were not as serious as they might have been in the circumstances,” he said. “There was never any intention or thought of causing serious harm to his mum, or any harm at all, but it was, he understands, mindlessly reckless.”

Mr Thomas said the defendant was now sober and drug-free, as well as deeply remorseful.

Concluding, Judge Simon Mills said: “Your life has been ruined by the use of drugs. Unfortunately, in this case, you have shown that you are capable of seeking to harm the lives of others through your use of drugs.

“It’s difficult to imagine a lower form of offending than targeting your mother in this way.

“She barricaded herself in her room because she was frightened of you. If that fire had taken off, you would have cut off her simplest means of escaping the house. Fire gets out of control unpredictably and kills people who are in its path, either by the heat of the fire or smoke.

“She, at the end of the day, is your mother, and she will continue to care for you no doubt despite your behaviour – and that’s another thing that should make you feel absolutely ashamed of yourself.”

Bell received a sentence of two years and eight months’ imprisonment, with a victim surcharge of £190. He will serve up to half of his sentence before being released on a licence.