Two guilty of murdering man in house fire

Two men have been convicted of murdering a man by setting fire to his family's home.

Daniel Tatters and Dale Francis had denied killing Akashdeep Singh in the fire in Plascom Road, East Park, Wolverhampton last June.

Tatters, 26, of no fixed address, was filmed by a security camera as he smashed the front window of Mr Singh's home while Francis, from Basford, Stoke-on-Trent, acted as a driver and look-out.

Mr Singh, 26, died in hospital after the fire while his mother suffered life-changing injuries.

During the three-week trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court, jurors were told the defendants drove about 40 miles from Stoke-on-Trent to East Park and may have targeted the home by mistake, despite Francis's car having made several previous "background" journeys to the area.

Mr Singh and his mother were trapped upstairs but he managed to called the emergency services as the fire raged in the house below them at about 01:00 BST on 25 June, West Midlands Police said.

Four other family members, including a 16-year-old boy, were injured in the blaze.

One of Mr Singh's brothers only managed to escape by jumping out of a first floor window.

The court heard the Singh family could not think of any reason why anyone would have a grievance against them.

CCTV of the fire was played to the court which showed Tatters approaching the property carrying a container and then smashing the window before running away as the fire started.

A lighter discovered by fire crews at the scene was found to have his DNA on it, although Tatters told jurors he had never been to Wolverhampton and had cut his hand on a glass pane while falling over in his garden.

Detectives discovered he went to hospital in Stoke-on-Trent two hours after the fire was started with cuts to his hand, police said.

Phone records, an in-car tracking device and other CCTV footage linked Francis to the attack, the court heard.

Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC told the court at the opening of the case that both men "shared the intention to murder all the occupants and each assisted and/or encouraged the other to carry that out as planned"

"As to why they went to that house on that night, and as to why they did what they did, these are not matters which the prosecution need to prove. It may never be possible to know why."

Senior investigating officer Jenny Birch said it was "a callous and unprovoked attack on people who were asleep in the safety of their own home".

"Both these men played their part in this tragic event and both are accountable for the awful consequences."

Tatters and Francis were also convicted of arson with intent to endanger life and attempting to murder other family members.

Mr Justice Wall remanded both men in custody following the verdicts, telling them they would be sentenced on Thursday.

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