Drunk Sunderland man accidentally set fire to towels at flat

A drunken tenant’s wrecking spree at his rented Sunderland home was uncovered by police after he accidentally set his towels on fire, a court heard.

Vitaljus Dapsevicius, 38, unintentionally started a blaze at his flat South Durham Court, North Durham Road, Hendon – then doused the flames by putting his linen in the bath.

But officers who attended on Friday, June 23, discovered he had deliberately also smashed wiring, doors and flooring past easy repair.

Damage caused by Dapsevicius, now of city centre Swan Lodge, in High Street East, caused his abode in Gentoo housing association’s unit to be boarded up.

At South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court, he pleaded guilty to a charge of causing criminal damage and was ordered to pay the housing provider £1,500 compensation.

Prosecutor Paul Anderson said: “This gentleman was living at South Durham Court, which is owned by Gentoo and is multi-occupancy housing.

“The police are called because there has been a small fire. Towels were in the bathroom, but there was other damage.

“Wiring was damaged, carpets had been slashed, there was dried blood and the bathroom door had been broken in half.

“The property was uninhabitable. The locks had to be changed and the place boarded up.

“He admitted the offence and said that he was intoxicated at the time and had caused a fire unintentionally and had put the towels in the bath to contain the fire and had turned on the tap.”

Unemployed Dapsevicius’s previous convictions include being drunk and disorderly in public, theft from a shop and the assault of an emergency worker.

Representing himself, Dapsevicius told the hearing mental health issues, for which he was seeking help, were the reason he caused the damage.

Magistrates also sentenced him to a 12-month community order, with 15 rehabilitation days.