A Corentyne man was on Tuesday sentenced to four years in prison after he pleaded guilty to committing arson, leaving his brother, sister, her husband and three children homeless.
Andrew Lowenfield, 47, of Lot 310 Number 51 Village, Corentyne, was charged with setting fire to the dwelling on October, 24. He appeared before Magistrate Alex Moore at the Springlands Magistrate’s Court.
After he pleaded guilty, he was sentenced to four years imprisonment.
Lowenfield is accused of setting the house he occupied with seven others on fire on Sunday last. Omataya Lowenfield, the accused’s sister, had told Stabroek News that she occupied the lower flat of the two-storey building with her husband and three children, while the accused and another brother resided in the upper flat.
According to her, she was awoken by smoke just around 2 am on Sunday after which she noticed flames in the upper flat of the building. She quickly woke her husband and children and rushed them outside to safety.
The woman said that they were unable to save anything as the fire quickly spread throughout the building.
She relayed that her other brother had told her that the accused started the fire in his room by spraying gas on a mattress and setting it alight.
She said that the accused, who was released from prison about two years ago, would often threaten to burn the house whenever he imbibed.
The woman, who estimated her losses to be in the millions, can be contacted on telephone numbers 6851547 or 6926549.
