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Arsonist jailed for life after murdering pensioner trapped in burning Willenhall flats

A jilted ex-boyfriend who started a fire at a block of flats which killed an innocent pensioner was today ordered to serve at least 21 years in jail.

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Aiden Elmore and the damage done by his arson spree

Aiden Elmore was jailed for life after being told it was only a matter of chance that more victims were not killed when he used wheelie bins to block a rear exit from the flats.

Elmore, aged 21, of no fixed address, was convicted of murdering Victor Moore and two counts of arson with intent to endanger life last week following a trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

Passing sentence today, Judge John Warner said Elmore had created a scene of 'fear and panic' in which people could be heard screaming and were forced to escape through windows.

Several people jumped to safety during the fire in Southey Close, Short Heath, near Walsall, but 68-year-old Mr Moore died after becoming trapped in a communal hallway.

Elmore, who had been drinking and taking drugs after splitting up with Lauren Wellings, then started garden fires in Crab Lane en route to the Wychbold Way home of her mother in nearby New Invention, where he set fire to wheelie bins placed next to patio windows.

At Wolverhampton Crown Court today Judge Warner sentenced Elmore to life with a minimum of 21 years for murder. He got 11 years for the Southey Close arson and eight years for the attack in Wychbold Way. All the sentences will run concurrently.

The judge told him: "From the circumstances of these offences, you are in my opinion a dangerous man."

He added: "It would appear that it was purely a matter of chance that Mr Moore was the only person to lose his life."

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