Neighbour row explodes as resident sets fire to next-door’s garden room after 'good Samaritan' cut his grass

The previously amicable relationship between the residents in the Hull street turned sour when Suddaby viewed the kind gesture as an unwelcome intrusion.

Hours after confronting his neighbour about the lawn-cutting, Suddaby, of Downs Crescent, Hull, started a bonfire that would spiral catastrophically out of control.

The blaze completely destroyed the luxury garden room and damaged another neighbour's fence.

On February 22 at approximately 6.45pm, Suddaby lit a bonfire in his back garden, blasting loud music while drinking heavily by the flames.

His neighbour retired to his garden room for the evening, believing the fire had been extinguished. However, Suddaby had added more fuel to the blaze, creating an ominous orange glow visible over the fence.

When alerted to the inferno, the neighbour rushed out with a hosepipe to battle the flames.

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"But the fire was out of control and there was little the neighbour could do as the garden room was destroyed," prosecutor David Godfrey told Grimsby Crown Court.

Emergency services arrived at 9.27pm, with fire investigators later discovering white vinegar and bleach at the scene. The luxury outdoor structure, valued between £50,000 and £70,000, featured a wood burner and bedroom area.

Another resident's fence panels were also destroyed in the blaze, with the court hearing the fire posed a serious risk to lives.

Suddaby pleaded guilty to arson, being reckless as to whether lives were endangered, and admitted damaging the fence panels through arson.

Defence barrister Richard Butters told the court his client had been consuming "significant amounts of alcohol" on the day of the incident.

"He regrets dreadfully what he did. He feels horrible about it and he is showing genuine remorse," Butters said.

The lawyer explained that Suddaby perceived the lawn-cutting as "an intrusion" rather than a neighbourly gesture.

"It all blew up on the day and he had been drinking heavily," he added.

Judge Richard Woolfall said the neighbour had invested heavily in making his garden room lavish, noting it was fortunate he hadn't fallen asleep in the bed inside.

"There was no rhyme or reason for it," the judge said of the arson attack.

Suddaby was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison.

The court heard he had previously been jailed for 14 months in January last year for careless driving, failing to provide a breath specimen and failing to stop after an accident in June 2023.

That conviction breached a 21-month suspended sentence from February 2023 for assaulting his ex-girlfriend, causing actual bodily harm, assaulting police officers, criminal damage and drug possession.