Arsonist Kills Innocent Pensioner When Setting Bar Ablaze

An arsonist consumed with rage after rowing with a bar owner killed the next-door neighbour pensioner when he splashed the building with petrol and set fire to the business.

Vietnam-born Tuan Anh Le, 23, (pic.mid.) held a six-month grudge with the Xo Bar after a minor incident with the owner and is now starting a thirteen-year sentence.

He was convicted by an Old Bailey jury of manslaughter after life-long resident Giuseppina Fazzani, 82, suffered fatal burns at her Deptford High Street, Deptford home in the early hours of May 29, last year.

The Vietnamese Xo Bar (pic.bottom) occupied the same building Miss Fazzani lived in since the age of three years-old and for most of that time it had been run as a family cafe.

She was asleep in her ground-floor bedroom when Le bought petrol from a local station and set the building ablaze.

CCTV captured the defendant driving up and down Deptford High Street twice before getting out and peering through the security shutter of the bar.

He then drove to a nearby petrol station where he purchased kitchen roll as well as a canister of petrol.



Returning to the bar just before 1:30am, Le was again captured on CCTV, starting a fire at the door of 189 and then a second fire at 187 - the address of Miss Fazzani – before fleeing in his vehicle.



Inside the property Miss Fazzani's niece was asleep on the second floor when she was woken by the smoke alarm.

She tried to get downstairs to help her aunt, but was beaten back by heat and smoke and had to be rescued by the London Fire Brigade.



Miss Fazzani was found unconscious by her bed having suffered serious burns.

She was treated by paramedics at the scene but was pronounced dead at 3:00am.

Le was arrested by detectives from the Homicide and Major Crime Command three days later.

He refused to answer any questions during his police interviews.

Detective Inspector Nathan Eason said: "Josie, as she was known to her family and friends would not have stood a chance of escaping the fire due to her advanced years and mobility issues.

“Having committed this reckless and despicable act Le attempted to evade responsibility for his actions by claiming he was forced into setting the fires.

“The jury clearly saw through this complete fabrication and rightly convicted him.

“We can only hope that today's conviction can in some small way assist Josie's family to come to terms with her tragic and needless loss."