Woman who torched neighbour's Land Rover because she thought his rescue badgers killed local cat is spared jail
MEOW DONE IT Woman who torched neighbour's Land Rover because she thought his rescue badgers killed local cat is spared jail
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A WOMAN who torched a neighbour's Land Rover because she thought his badgers killed a local cat has been spared jail.
Graham Lee, 56, saw his Freelander destroyed as his furious neighbour attempted to kill the badgers living on his driveway.
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Susan Lupton set her neighbour's Land Rover ablaze
Credit: Solent
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She had mistakenly believed that the animals Graham Lee cared for had killed a local cat
Credit: Solent
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Lupton avoided prison after admitting two counts of arson
Credit: Solent
Susan Lupton, 63, dubbed her neighbour the "evil badger man" as she believed the animals he cared for had killed another neighbour's pet cat.
The arson took place at the coastal village of Freshwater Bay on the Isle of Wight, causing £18,500 worth of damages with Lee's Freelander destroyed.
Another property was also damaged as the blaze spread to a neighbouring house.
Police arrived to Lupton, who has bipolar disorder, having a manic episode, telling officers: "I did it, I'm responsible".
She has avoided prison after admitting two counts of arson but has been banned from the area.
Isle of Wight Court heard how Lupton set fire to Lee's Land Rover on June 20, 2024.
She had set fire to a plastic container filled with white spirit before sliding it under the Freelander, according to prosecutor Joanna Staples.
The vehicle was completely gutted and a window, guttering, cooker extractor and a tree were all damaged beyond repair on a neighbouring property.
Lee, a wildlife volunteer, would leave food out for the badgers on his driveway, tried to put out the blaze himself before firefighters arrived.
The badgers haven't returned to the property since the fire, he said.
Lupton, who moved to the UK from South Africa in 1980, told police she had started the fire in an attempt to kill the badgers he was looking after.
She believed they had killed a cat owned by another neighbour.
Lupton also claimed she had learnt how to start the fire from a firefighter friend.
The court heard how she had shared posts on her Facebook page claiming Lee was an "evil badger man".
Moment dad calmly stretches as he's snared for shaking baby daughter to death
In a victim impact statement, Lee said that Lupton was "sick, twisted and a manipulative individual".
He added how she had left him constantly checking his security cameras out of fear she may appear on his driveway with some matches.
Lee went on to add that his Land Rover was his "pride and joy" and said Lupton's actions had ruined his life.
He told the court that Lupton has posted videos online of her throwing bricks at badgers and lacing bowls of food with glass.
Neighbour Kavita Hayton, whose home was damaged by the incident, said the attack had left her "genuinely frightened" and in "a state of fear for many months".
Lupton's barrister Jonathan Underhill told the court that Lupton had a single conviction for criminal damage on her record and that she had bipolar disorder.
He asked the judge to give Lupton a suspended sentence to help with her rehabilitation.
Judge James Newton-Price said the victims had suffered a "terrifying experience" and Lupton had developed a "fixation" and had become "irrationally obsessed".
The judge added during sentencing: "You say you are horrified for what you've done.
"I believe you have a realistic prospect of rehabilitation, and that imprisonment would reverse your progress."
Lupton was ordered to pay costs of £1,000 and compensation of £7,835.
She was handed two years' imprisonment, suspended for two years and was given a restraining order to stay away from Lee.
In addition, Lupton has been banned from the village of Freshwater indefinitely.
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Lee, a wildlife volunteer, said the badgers hadn't returned since the attack
Credit: Solent
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