Arson case man in ‘cry for help’

Friday 20th August 2010, 3:00PM BST.

The Royal Court building

A SCHIZOPHRENIC who set fire to his flat in a desperate cry for help has been jailed – because there is no sheltered accommodation for him in Jersey.

Steven Corbel (44) was jailed for 2½ years after he pleaded guilty to arson – he caused more than £10,000 worth of damage to his flat in Simon Place – and other offences when he appeared in the Royal Court yesterday.

The Bailiff, Michael Birt, told Corbel that he would have been spared a jail sentence by the court had there had been sheltered accommodation and the option of a relevant treatment order available in the community.

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