An Egyptian accountant has been accused of starting a blaze in a rental pool house in Buri, the High Criminal Court heard.
In January, the 41-year-old defendant, having consumed too many drinks at a party, ended up having a drunken argument with fellow partygoers which exploded into a fiery encounter.
He was charged with arson, property damage and posing a threat to people’s lives.
The owner of the property, also aged 41, had come to the house at 6am on the day of the incident with his co-owner to receive the keys to the property from a client who had rented it the night before.
He recounted seeing the defendant outside of the house, getting into a verbal argument with a number of individuals, then being beaten up by them.
“I got the defendant away from the people who were hitting him and he ran into the house. They chased after him and they continued to assault him for a reason that I don’t know,” the Bahraini testified. “They then left, and the defendant came out of the property agitated, and appeared to be injured. He was yelling at my co-owner and threatening to trash the place.
“I saw him go into the storeroom near the door, unhooking a gas cylinder from the pipes, taking it inside and locking the door behind him.
“We couldn’t open the door and, a few minutes later, we saw smoke rising from within. We managed to get in and found that there was a fire in the living room and bedrooms.”
A Civil Defence crew was swiftly despatched to the scene, and the firefighters put out the blaze. According to an officer who was on the fire team, the blaze had been fuelled by gas. An empty cylinder was found thrown into the swimming pool.
He stated in his report that the fire appeared to be man-made, and that all the items and furniture in the house were damaged from heat and smoke.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian defendant claimed that he was ‘blackout drunk’ at the time of the incident. He told the Public Prosecution that he was invited by a Bahraini man who had rented the pool house by the day, and that he drank until he lost consciousness.
“By the morning, I was severely drunk and unaware of my behaviour,” he claimed. “Five people that I didn’t know came and beat me up. I went inside to hide from them and they ran after me.
“I don’t remember what happened then – only that they beat me some more – then I woke up in an ambulance.”
Judges have set April 28 as the date a verdict will be issued in the case.
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