Sleaford man jailed for six years and nine months after starting fire at Lincoln County Hospital
It caused almost £2 million pounds worth of damage
Last updated 3rd Apr 2023
A Sleaford man's been jailed for six years and nine months after deliberately starting a fire in the A&E department of Lincoln County Hospital,
The incident caused almost £2 million pounds worth of damage.
Last March 57-year-old, John Gillon Watson from Vicarage Court entered the hospital as a patient, before going into a room where he started a fire.
The department was evacuated and no one was injured, but the arson attack caused significant damage to medical equipment and carried a huge risk of igniting medical oxygen piping that ran throughout the hospital.
During the investigation, CCTV footage showed a man wearing a distinctive black jacket with Elvis on the back – who was later identified as Watson – in an area which was being engulfed with smoke before he was moved on by fire fighters.
There were no other people captured on CCTV in the area at the time of the fire starting.
In January, Watson admitted to a charge of arson with recklessness as to whether life is endangered.
Today he was given 6 years and nine months with an extended sentence of five years.
He must serve at least two thirds of that before he can be considered for parole.
Detective Sergeant Dave Patten from Lincoln CID led the investigation. He said:
“This was one of the most serious and reckless cases of arson we have ever dealt with; the potential for harm should that fire have escalated is unthinkable.
“The impact on the community and the hospital teams has been profound, with patients having to be diverted to other treatment centres, and clean up and repair work impacting the use of a busy emergency department.
“This would have been very frightening for staff and patients, and I hope that today’s sentencing goes some way to providing some comfort that justice has been served against the individual responsible.”