Man jailed for trying to set himself on fire in filling station

 A depressed man who tried to set himself alight at a petrol station was just seconds away from causing a “catastrophic” fire .

Willmantas Zuikis tried to ignite the fuel by clicking a cigarette lighter at a petrol pump in the early hours last August, a court heard.
But he was foiled when an “on the ball” cashier realised the risk from his suspicious behaviour and did not turn the petrol pump on.

Zuikis has been jailed for 16 months due to his “spectacularly risky behaviour” which could have had “catastrophic consequences” for not only the defendant, but the cashier.

According to Daily Mirror, Judge Mark Bury acknowledged that Zuikis was suffering as a result of matrimonial difficulties.

Zuikis, 40, of Wellington Street, Grimsby, admitted arson, being reckless as to whether life was endangered on August 14.

Jeremy Evans, prosecuting, told Grimsby Crown Court that Zuikis went to a petrol station in the early hours under the influence of drink and asked for alcohol.

Cashier Mark Jackson refused to serve him alcohol at the Murco petrol station, now BP, in Cleethorpe Road, Grimsby.

Mr Evans added that Zuikis, in a line “immortalised by the well-known Hollywood movie, turned to Mr Jackson and said: ‘I’ll be back’.”

He returned at 4.15am and Mr Jackson saw him “fiddling” and “messing about” with petrol pumps.

Mr Jackson realised that something was not right and did not authorise the start-up of petrol delivery for the pump, not least because no car was there.

Zuikis tried a couple of times to ignite the fuel with a cigarette lighter but there was only a small flame from the vapours in the fuel pipe.

Paul Norton, mitigating, said that Zuikis had been drinking and “took temporary leave of his senses” because of stress from the break-up of his 20-year marriage.

He was now in a new relationship and had moderated his drinking.

The garage attendant was aware that Zuikis was behaving erratically and had refused him alcohol.

“Had petrol been delivered from the pump, there was a serious risk to life,” said Mr Norton.

Because the attendant had already decided not to allow petrol to be released, there was no significant danger of a major fire, although there was some danger.

There was a “momentary flame” but Zuikis, who is Lithuanian, had shown remorse.

Judge Bury said it would have been “spectacularly serious” if fuel had been dispensed from the pump.