'It was a terrifying ordeal': Man who set house on fire with people inside on Christmas Day jailed

A terrifying Christmas Day ordeal for four people in a house that was deliberately set on fire was all the more frightening for one woman who had to be rescued from the roof of an adjoining house as the fire blazed below her.

That was how Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford today described the experience of the victims as she imposed a sentence of six years and nine months on 32-year-old Shane Casey, to commence in approximately one year when his present sentence for an aggravated burglary expires.

The judge said that apart from the arson damage to 5 Dyke Parade, Cork, there was collateral damage to the Georgian houses on either side which were described as excellently maintained properties. Total damage across the three properties cost €240,000 to repair.

But Ms Justice Lankford said:

“That is bad enough but from my perspective, the real issue was the risk to life posed by Mr Casey’s actions. The four people all had smoke inhalation injuries. (The owner of the targeted house) had slashes that had to be sutured. It was a terrifying ordeal for all of them.

“In particular, (one of the women present) had to be rescued from the roof, 45 minutes after the fire was set. Being out on the roof of an adjoining property with the building underneath you on fire is a very significant matter. And it took six units of the fire brigade to bring it under control.

“Mr Casey imposed on these people a terrifying ordeal. He addressed (the owner) at knifepoint as he left the building, and he required him to go back into the building that was burning and told him he was going to die.” 

As for the defendant, the judge noted that he had been diagnosed with paranoid psychosis and had been medicated in the past for schizophrenia. He mistakenly believed that a person present in the house that day was someone with whom he had argued days earlier.

The judge added: “I take the view he is a very vulnerable person. Nonetheless his actions on the night were extremely dangerous. He is particularly vulnerable and particularly dangerous to society if he presents in the way he presented on December 25 2023.” 

Sergeant Brian Barron said that as the fire took hold, and smoke and flames spread through the building, Shane Casey who started it with an accelerant, held a knife at the front door and forced it closed from the outside.

Sergeant Barron testified that Shane Casey, who was previously living at Shanowen, Rathcormac, Co Cork, turned up outside the house on Dyke Parade, Cork, just after 6pm on December 25, 2023. Four people were present in the house.

“At 6.05pm, he exits and stands looking in the open front door at the fire taking hold. At 6.06pm, he closes the front door and attempts to barricaded the front door from the outside, using a piece of timber to jam to the side and then under the door.

“He takes a blade from his pocket and holds it out in front of him and waits outside. At 6.08pm, the front door bursts open and [one of the men] attempts to escape the now blazing house.

“Shane Casey swipes at him with the blade twice, slashing his forehead. He has no choice but to retreat back into the burning house with Shane Casey in pursuit.

"He can be seen blocking attempts made to get out of the burning house, again holding the blade before leaving at 6.09pm.

"The man who was cut did not know the person who set fire to the house but told gardaí the person said: 'My name is Shane Casey and you remember me from two days ago — you are going to die here tonight.'

"In the following two minutes, a woman and two men leave. The last person in the building — a woman — could not get out and went to the fourth floor. The first two floors were in flames.

“At 6.17pm, the fire service rescue arrive. They rescue her from the burning building by removing her from the roof of the adjoining property.

“At least six units of the fire service took more than six hours to bring the fire under control and make the building safe.” 

The house itself had been owned by a man living somewhat “off grid” who used to allow some homeless people to stay there. With virtually no working utilities in the house there was no bin collection and several rooms were stacked high with refuse built up over years.

Properties neighbouring 5 Dyke Parade which were kept in excellent condition by their owners were also damage by the fire. One of them only sustained €10,000 smoke damage, the other was more seriously affected, with the damage put at €120,000. The fire at 5 Dyke Parade caused extensive damage and would have cost €110,000 to return it to a basic condition. As the owner had no money to pay for this and had no insurance, he has had to sell the house and live elsewhere.

The exact times of events around 6pm were known because of neighbouring CCTV which captured what occurred. Several minutes of video recordings were shown to the judge at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork.

The total sentence of six years and nine months, consecutive to the sentence he is already serving was imposed in total in respect of charges of assault causing harm to the owner, production of an article, namely a blade, in the course of the assault, and causing criminal damage to the house and neighbouring properties with intent to endanger life.