Man set neighbour's house on fire in 'fury at constant hammering'

Man fined Dh5,000 and will spend three months in jail

A Dubai court has granted a retrial to an Emirati man who was convicted of causing his friend’s death in a Shisha fire. AFP

A man in Ajman was sentenced to three months in jail after being found guilty of setting his neighbour's house on fire.

Judges at Ajman Criminal Court heard that the man, 34, filled empty soda bottles with petrol and attached cloth wicks to them. He then lit them and threw them on the neighbour’s balcony.

The incident happened in May 2020.

The neighbour, an Arab woman, called police officials who put out the fire.

She told officers the man threw rocks on her balcony and damaged the apartment door before he started the fire.

The man was arrested and told officers he was annoyed by the constant hammering noise that came from the neighbour’s apartment.

He said he reported the woman to the police nine times for causing a disturbance.

Bottles of petrol were found in the man's apartment.

Last week the court sentenced the man, who admitted the crime, to a suspended three months in prison and fined him Dh5,000.