GATESHEAD MAN JAILED FOR ARSON AND THREATS AFTER RELATIONSHIP BREAKDOWN
Raging George Taylor video-called his partner to show he was setting her house on fire as their 28 year relationship went up in flames.The victim, who said their relationship had been "rocky" and "controlling", described how matters spiralled out of control in June 2023.
She returned home from shopping one day and he began screaming and shouting at her, leading her to leave and seek refuge at her friend's house.
Taylor followed her, got in his Mercedes and began chasing her, shouting: "I'm going to kill you then your son, I'm going to leave you with nothing." Prosecuting lawyer Omar Ahmad told Newcastle Crown Court: "She said he was driving on the pavement and trying to run her over.
She was running in circles being chased by the defendant in his vehicle.
She was petrified and thought she would be run over or hit with the car." The woman managed to outmaneuver him and went back to her home in Leam Lane, Gateshead, with Taylor following.
Prosecutor Ahmad said: "She saw him holding a crossbow in the car.
He got out and pointed it at her, saying he would do her son in and her.
She described him as raging and frothing at the mouth." Taylor made threatening phone calls and the victim later went to her son's house in Washington.
Taylor made a video call from inside her house claiming her home had been set on fire or was going to be.
Ahmad said: "She could see him pouring liquid onto the living room floor with a green jerry can and frothing at the mouth, saying he would burn the house down and then come for her." The woman then received a call from her neighbour informing her her house was on fire, with three fire engines present, and the entire downstairs was destroyed.
Taylor was arrested at a hotel in Birtley on July 2 and found with cannabis worth up to £2,000.
In a victim impact statement, she recounted living for eight months in a house with no kitchen and only one power socket due to the damage caused.
She said it has significantly impacted her mental health, still experiencing flashbacks of him pouring petrol over her home.
At court, Taylor, 53, formerly of Leam Lane, Gateshead, who has 162 previous convictions, pleaded guilty to arson recklessly endangering life, affray, common assault, malicious communications, and possession of cannabis.
He was sentenced to six years and two months in prison and was given an indefinite restraining order.
Judge Amanda Rippon told him: "Your offending is extremely serious.
You absolutely terrified your wife, or ex-wife." His defense, Annalise Haugstad, said Taylor is remorseful and explained that the incident was the breakdown of their relationship over a 24-hour period.
She also mentioned that he has been remanded in custody for 18 months, has had medical issues, and is now a "different man".
