Co Down man sawed his way into neighbour’s flat in alleged revenge attack, court hears

Jack McClure faces charges of arson with intent to endanger life, burglary with intent to steal and possession of drugs including magic mushrooms, herbal cannabis, pregabalin and diazepam

A Co Down man sawed his way into a neighbour’s flat to set it on fire in an alleged revenge attack, the High Court has heard.

Jack McClure admitted starting a blaze which gutted the apartment in Bangor, a judge was told.

He claims to have trashed and then torched the property earlier this month in retaliation for some unexplained harassment.

Details emerged as the 27-year-old defendant mounted an application to be released on bail.

McClure, of Balloo Walk in the town, faces charges of arson with intent to endanger life, burglary with intent to steal and possession of drugs including magic mushrooms, herbal cannabis, pregabalin and diazepam.

Prosecutors said another flat in his building was burning for an hour when emergency services attended the scene at around 5.30am on September 6.

The front door had been sawn off before a bedroom inside was deliberately set alight.

Police called to the scene encountered McClure with his hands and clothes covered in soot, the court heard.

A search of his own apartment recovered a saw and quantities of suspected drugs.

During interviews he admitted breaking into his neighbour’s home to carry out the attack.

“He said he had been drunk, lost his temper, trashed the property and set fire to the bedroom,” a prosecution barrister submitted.

“He said he didn’t intend to harm anyone but wanted the victim to know it was him.”

Opposing bail, counsel argued that McClure had reacted in an extreme way to some form of neighbourhood dispute linked to allegations of harassment.

“The property was almost completely destroyed and there may be structural damage to the building,” the barrister said.

“(McClure) broke in using a saw… and there was a lot of time for him to think about it, but instead he started the fire.”

Even though the victim was not at home when the blaze started, other residents were asleep in adjoining properties at the time.

The judge was told no further explanation has been provided for the acrimony which led to the alleged revenge attack.

Rachael McCormick, defending, suggested there may have been a deterioration in McClure’s mental health.

She contended that because her client has already made admissions he could be released from custody without any risk of interference with the investigation.

Ms McCormick confirmed he was reluctant to give any further reasons for any alleged motive.

The bail application was adjourned, however, amid concerns McClure was seeking to live too close to where the victim is now staying.

Ms Justice Smyth said: “The risk would be more manageable if the address was further away from the injured party at this point.”

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