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Pair guilty of firework killing | Pair guilty of firework killing |
(20 minutes later) | |
Two teenagers have been found guilty of killing a grandmother by pushing a firework through her letterbox. | Two teenagers have been found guilty of killing a grandmother by pushing a firework through her letterbox. |
Mary Fox, 59, died in a fire at her home in Wallace Road, Bodmin, Cornwall, on 5 November 2009. | Mary Fox, 59, died in a fire at her home in Wallace Road, Bodmin, Cornwall, on 5 November 2009. |
Owen Hewitt, 18, of Bodmin Foyer, and Samual Luckes, 17, of Rhind Street, Bodmin, were convicted of manslaughter and arson at Truro Crown Court. | |
A third teenager, Ryan Croft, 18, of Wallace Road, Bodmin, pleaded guilty in February. They will be sentenced later. | A third teenager, Ryan Croft, 18, of Wallace Road, Bodmin, pleaded guilty in February. They will be sentenced later. |
The court heard the firework, pushed through the letterbox by Hewitt, had set alight a large amount of clutter in the hallway which had been hoarded by Mrs Fox. | |
'Give a fright' | 'Give a fright' |
Unable to escape the building, she was overcome by fumes and smoke and died. | |
Her 17-year-old son, Raum, escaped by jumping from a first-floor bedroom window of the three-storey house. | |
The jury heard that both Raum and his mother had been subjected to bullying and harassment by local youths. | The jury heard that both Raum and his mother had been subjected to bullying and harassment by local youths. |
Hewitt and Luckes' defence lawyers said that they had not meant to kill Mrs Fox and had only meant to "give the occupants a fright". | Hewitt and Luckes' defence lawyers said that they had not meant to kill Mrs Fox and had only meant to "give the occupants a fright". |
Their families gasped and sobbed as the jury foreman delivered the majority verdict. | |
Mrs Fox's family said the mother-of-nine was a self-sacrificing woman who was "loving and caring" and her death had been "senseless". | Mrs Fox's family said the mother-of-nine was a self-sacrificing woman who was "loving and caring" and her death had been "senseless". |