The case that saw killer jailed for life almost 25 years after setting his partner on fire

Steven Craig was inspired by the 1992 film Reservoir Dogs when he doused Jacqueline Kirk in petrol

This week, a man was sentenced to life in prison for dousing his partner in petrol and setting her on fire in 1998 – an attack that would kill her decades later.

Mother of two Jacqueline Kirk suffered “unimaginable” physical injuries that required hours of surgery on a tracheotomy, facial reconstruction and skin grafting after 35 per cent of her body was burnt.

The man responsible, Steven Craig, was inspired by the 1992 Quentin Tarantino film Reservoir Dogs when he carried out the attack in Weston-super-Mare nearly a quarter of a century ago.

Jacqueline Kirk died at the age of 61, more than two decades after the attack (Somerset Police/PA)

The particular scene is where Michael Madsen’s Mr Blonde tortures a policeman in a warehouse, pouring petrol all over him and threatening to set him alight.

Unlike the fictional character though, Craig followed through on the horrific threat.

During sentencing on Thursday, Ms Justice Stacey said Craig watched the film with a “permanent grin” and “enjoyed” the torture of the policeman and “liked acting like a character in the film”.

“You caused her death by setting fire to her,” she said. “You had no intention to kill Jackie but the risk was so obvious.”

The judge said father of two Craig – 33 years old at the time – said he was going to torture Ms Kirk and acted out of “revenge over jealousy and perceived slights”.

Craig had previously been convicted of grievous bodily harm with intent in relation to the attack and had served more than 15 years in prison before being released.

However, he was arrested and charged with Ms Kirk’s murder in 2021 following her death, aged 61, in August 2019.

Bristol Crown Court was told the injuries she sustained in the petrol attack were linked to her death from a ruptured diaphragm.

Ms Kirk and her daughter Sonna (Avon and Somerset Police/PA)

Ms Kirk had struggled to regain a normal life following the fire that had left her on the brink of death.

Her eldest child Shane recalled the fear of his mother dying every time she was admitted to hospital after the attack.

She could no longer paint – a hobby she loved – because of her injuries, and people would cross the road when she passed by and shout “freak” at her.

Despite her injuries, Ms Kirk managed to rebuild her life. She beat the odds of her survival chances, lived to see her grandchildren and took up photography to fill her love of art.

As Craig, 58, was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 15 years, we look at how he finally paid the price for his crimes.

1995

Ms Kirk before suffering her injuries at the hands of her partner (Avon and Somerset Police/PA)

In 1995, Ms Kirk began a relationship with Craig. Sonna was 13 and Shane was 22.

Shane said he didn’t know Craig much as their mother “tried to hide the details of the relationship”, but he said he saw her “change” and by the following year understood the “terrible” things happening in the relationship.

Prosecuting during the court case, Richard Smith KC said Craig was “exploitative, controlling and coercive” to Ms Kirk.

He said Craig, who used drugs and alcohol, was a “volatile character” who had been violent towards her in the past, suffering facial fractures.

“Jackie was frightened of the defendant with good cause,” he said. “He was controlling of her.”

He said on one occasion Craig went into her bedroom with a can of petrol and poured it over Ms Kirk and her bed and threatened to set it alight, telling her: “I could end you right now.”

Craig repeatedly threatened to burn down her flat and locked her in a railway station toilet for hours after being violent towards her.

1998

Steven Craig was first convicted in 2000, while his victim was still alive (PA)

Craig forced Ms Kirk to go on a trip after threatening to kill her in April 1998.

Judge Stacey told the court how while at a service stop, Craig filled a bottle of Coca-Cola with petrol and while parked in a Weston-super-Mare car park launched the attack that would change her life for ever.

She felt petrol being poured over her head and chest as he forced her head down in the passenger seat. They got out of the car and he offered her a cigarette, saying it “may be your last”.

He had a lighter in his hand and a flame went across her face as she was ignited as she screamed for help in agony. He did not try and help her but told her to stay away from him and roll over to put the flames out.

Ms Kirk’s wounds were “life-changingly awful” and pictures of them were too graphic to show to the jury, the judge said.

1999

Craig lied to the police about the injury and charges may have not successfully been brought against him if Ms Kirk did not report him a year after the attack, after she found out he attacked and raped another woman.

2000

In 2000, Craig was convicted of grievous bodily harm with intent following a trial at Bristol Crown Court. He served more than 15 years in prison for that attack and two offences against a different woman but was recalled on two separate occasions.

2019

Ms Kirk with her dog Molly (Avon and Somerset Police)

Ms Kirk was 40 years old when she was set on fire and was given around 10 more years to live due to the severity of her injuries.

She spent her remaining 21 years adapting to her new life and finding normality amid her injuries. She would become a “nanny” after her two children had children of their own.

The judge detailed how Ms Kirk suffered intestinal swelling for an unknown reason, and how scarring to her chest and abdomen meant their ability to expand was reduced. This caused a ruptured diaphragm, with doctors unable to operate given her frailty.

Her son and daughter were by her bedside when she died in August 2019, having been taken to the Royal United Hospital in Bath seriously unwell.

Ms Kirk took up photography after her attack as she could no longer paint (Avon and Somerset Police)

Sonna praised the first responders and all those involved in providing her mother with medical care over the years, saying: “If it wasn’t for them we wouldn’t have had the extra 21 years, and we’re very, very grateful for all the hard work they did.”

Ms Kirk’s strong character helped her to recover, her daughter said. “Most people would describe her as stubborn, and that’s mostly seen as a negative thing, but for her it was a very positive thing, it kept her going and it got her stronger and it got her to be Jackie,” she added.

She added that she had spent the remainder of her teenage years worrying about her mum’s condition, but was grateful for the years she got to spend with her.

Shane said Craig had “taken her away from our lives too soon”.

2020

Bodycam footage of Craig’s arrest (Avon and Somerset Police/PA)

In a legal first, Craig was arrested for his crime once again – this time for murder.

Capturing the moment of his arrest, the police officer is heard saying: “Jacqueline Kirk who you were convicted for GBH. She died in 2019. She has died as a result of the injuries she sustained from the assault you committed on her.

“So that is why you are being arrested for suspicion of her murder.”

While hearing the conditions of his arrest, Craig continued to roll a cigarette as he sat on the floor.

Craig has been given life in prison, decades after the crime (Avon and Somerset Police/PA)

He then asked: “Wait, so she died from her injuries – which now makes me responsible for murder?”

In response, the officer said: “I take that this is a lot to take your head around.”

Craig then finished smoking his cigarette and drank his energy drink, before he was arrested.

2022

Craig was sentenced at Bristol Crown Court (PA)

On 28 October, a jury agreed with the prosecution that the horrific injuries he inflicted led to Ms Kirk’s death and convicted him of murder.

Ben Samples, head of the Crown Prosecution Service South West’s complex casework unit, said permission had to be sought from the then attorney general, Suella Braverman, for the charge.

“The charge was only possible after a rule called the ‘year and a day’ rule was abolished in 1996, which allowed us to then prosecute a homicide offence where a death occurred over a year and a day after the unlawful act,” Mr Samples said.

While sentencing Craig, the judge said: “There is no doubt you planned to partake in a monstrous and gratuitous attack on Jackie.

“Your conduct was sadistic from the build-up of the attack to when you doused her head and neck in petrol. The level of sadism, it was so callous and so brutal.”