Drunks jailed for setting man alight at Croydon booze den

By Anna Edwards

anna.edwards@essnmedia.co.uk

An argument between a group of drunks at a Croydon drinking den ended with a 52-year-old man being set alight and having boiling water poured over him.

Gary Smith and Terry Cummings have been jailed for the attack, which left Brian Davies with a severely scalded chest.

The pair, who pleaded guilty to wounding at Croydon Crown Court, also savagely beat up Mr Davies.

Judge Heather Baucher said it was one of the worst cases of its type to come before the court.

Smith, 42, from Southwark, was sentenced to 33 months in jail, while Cummings, 30, of Heathfield Vale, South Croydon, was given a three-year prison term.

Paul Cavin, prosecuting, said the outbreak of violence at a house in Old Town, on April 21, was caused by alcohol.

Mr Davies and his attackers were at the home of Daniel Jordan--- a meeting point for heavy drinkers.

Mr Cavin told the court: "An argument appears to have arisen almost out of nothing and involved Mr Davies' arrest some months before for an offence for which he was acquitted.

"The defendants kept questioning him about it and almost without warning there was an attack on him."

The victim was punched and hit with a chair leg, and tried to escape upstairs, with Smith and Cummings threatening to kill him.

"The two men grabbed him by his hair and pulled him out of a bedroom," Mr Cavin added.

"He was hit again and lighter fluid was squirted on his head and his hair was set alight. And a kettle of boiling water was poured over him."

Most of the attack was carried out by Cummings but, added Mr Cavin, it had been a joint enterprise.

Mr Davies was eventually able to run from the house in the early hours of the morning.

He was seen shouting for help by lorry driver David Scarborough, who was carrying out deliveries in the area.

Doctors at Mayday Hospital found burns on Mr Davies' face and scalding on his chest and back.

There was also blood coming from his left ear and his jaw was fractured.

Both Smith and Cummings have a string of previous convictions for a variety of offences.

Karame Inyundo, defending, said Smith only had a limited recollection of what happened on the night .

The court was told he had a tragic personal background, with his father leaving home when he was six and his mother having been an alcoholic.

Susan Rodham, defending Cummings, said his wife had died from meningitis and this had led to him suffering a breakdown.

Judge Baucher said the incident had been one of sustained violence.

"This has to be one of the worst cases of its type," she said. "You, Cummings, were the instigator, egged on by Smith."