An arsonist who torched a Bristol nightclub and concert venue in protest at the possibility of it introducing Covid passports has been jailed for six years.
Owen Marshall, 29, caused hundreds of thousands of pounds of damage to SWX on Nelson Street in the city centre when he set light to a petrol-soaked towel he had forced into the letterbox.
The blaze on July 13 this year, which also caused extensive damage to three neighbouring businesses, took place just a week before the venue was due to reopen post-lockdown.
It came two months after Marshall delivered a letter to the club threatening to burn it down, claiming it was a warning to other venue about so-called Covid passports.
Marshall, from Eastville, Bristol, was caught on CCTV dropping another letter to the home of the city’s mayor, Marvin Rees, confessing to the attack.
Just over two weeks later, on July 28, he hurled a brick through the window of the Barley Mow pub in Bedminster.
It was wrapped in a handwritten note claiming vaccine passports were a breach of human rights.
A few days later on August 2, Lakota, another city centre nightclub, received a letter saying it would ‘sustain substantial damage like SWX’ if it introduced Covid passports.
Marshall was tracked down after officers combed hundreds of hours of CCTV footage from the streets around SWX, tracing him back to the shop where he bought the matches.
He was identified from the footage following a public appeal.
Marshall initially denied responsibility, but later admitted arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered, criminal damage and making threats to cause criminal damage at Bristol Crown Court.
Investigating officer PC David Stevenson said: ‘Owen Marshall’s actions were motivated by the completely misguided belief the venues he targeted were about to introduce Covid vaccine passports.
‘His obsession with Covid restrictions ultimately led to him carrying out the extremely reckless attack on SWX and it is only through sheer luck no one was physically harmed.
‘Staff had been at the venue just hours before and they could easily still have been inside when he used an accelerant to start the fire.
‘More than 130 fire service personnel were also put at risk tackling the resulting blaze, which took several hours to extinguish.’
He added: ‘The attack has had a devastating impact on the club and the three businesses based below it, with hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of damage and lost revenue caused.
‘These were businesses which had all suffered as a result of the pandemic and which were looking forward to serving their community once more, only for their livelihoods to again be put in jeopardy.
‘While Marshall has never explained his actions, I am pleased he ultimately accepted responsibility as it negated the need for a trial.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Get your need-to-know
latest news, feel-good stories, analysis and more
Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our Twitter, & Facebook
We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.
For all the latest Covid-19 News Click Here
