Man who set fire to flat after assaulting partner jailed

A man who set fire to his flat in Perth and Kinross after assaulting his partner has been jailed for seven years.

David Storie, 37, started the blaze which spread to adjacent homes and resulted in the partial demolition of the building in Milnathort.

He was found guilty of assaulting his then partner by grabbing her by the throat and compressing her neck, and of wilful fireraising to the danger of life of the woman and three neighbours.

Storie was originally charged with attempting to murder them but was acquitted of that allegation.

The High Court in Edinburgh heard that Storie's then girlfriend saw him use a cigarette lighter to start the fire at a flat at the town's Wester Loan.

Judge Alison Stirling told Storie: "Custody is the only appropriate disposal having regard to the serious nature of your offending."

The court heard that police who responded to reports of an incident could see smoke and flames as they arrived at the scene and found "a well established fire".

Firefighters who attended could see flames coming from windows at the property and flames had breached the roof.

The trial was told Storie had seized his victim by the neck and squeezed, leaving her unable to breathe.

After causing her to fall to the floor, he pinned her down with a clothes horse.

The woman managed to escape from the flat and sought help from a neighbour but was followed by Storie, who grabbed her and dragged her back to his home.

After the assault, he used a cigarette lighter to set fire to a sofa cushion in his living room and the label of a mattress in his bedroom.

Storie then left the tenement block without alerting any of the other occupants to the fire.

The judge also made a non-harassment order prohibiting Storie from contacting his former partner for an indefinite period.