Man who set ex-girlfriend’s home on fire spared jail because he was ‘badly affected’ by break-up

‘It was an acute stress reaction to the loss of his partner, who had been his first and only girlfriend,’ says his lawyer

Hermes Crescent in Coventry, where the incident took place (Google Street View)

A man who committed arson after his ex-girlfriend broke up with him has been spared jail after his lawyer argued the attack was an “acute stress reaction” to the end of the relationship.

Following an argument with his ex-girlfriend in August, 23-year old Kristaps Karnats drank a bottle of whiskey and wrecked his ex-girlfriend’s home by ripping cabinets off the wall and throwing paint and furniture around.

He then piled clothes in the hallway and set it on fire, burning his hands as he tried to escape the blaze.

The court heard the terraced house was Karnat’s ex-girlfriend’s family home before the couple began renting it, which made the incident more upsetting.

According to the Coventry Observer, the fire spread to the hall and staircase before the fire brigade arrived and contained it.

Judge Sylvia de Bertonado told Karnats what he had done was “clearly very dangerous” and the fire could have easily spread to the house next door, which is occupied by an elderly person.

She added: “There is nothing in the reports to suggest you are a young man who would normally behave this way.

“You were very badly affected by the breakdown of your relationship, and this was an acute reaction to that.”

Karnats’ lawyer, Nicola Purches, said: “It was an acute stress reaction to the loss of his partner, who had been his first and only girlfriend.”

The judge sentenced Karnats to two years in prison, suspended for two years.

She said he had “spent the equivalent of an eight-month sentence in prison” as a reason for suspending his sentence.