Groom Jailed For Arson Attack At His Wedding

A bridegroom who set fire to his wedding reception venue after a row over the bar bill has been jailed for six years.

Property developer Max Kay had been celebrating his marriage last summer when he began arguing with staff at the Peckforton Castle Hotel in Cheshire, who refused to extend his bar tab.

In the early hours of the following morning, as his own wedding guests slept overnight at the hotel, Kay, 37, took a cigarette lighter from an unsuspecting barman and set fire to curtains in a drawing room of the 19th century Grade I listed historic building.

CCTV footage showed the groom entering and leaving the room.

The fire developed into a major blaze causing £6m damage.

Kay's new bride and her family were sleeping directly above the room where the fire was started.

Nobody was injured but the hotel was evacuated with almost 200 guests - including 11 children - gathering in the grounds wrapped in blankets and towels.

Kay, of Waylands Drive, Hunts Cross, Liverpool, was arrested after owner Chris Naylor examined the hotel's CCTV.

Mr Naylor said that even as the fire spread the bridegroom was behaving in a "cocky" manner demanding tea and coffee for guests until the police arrived when he became "sheepish".

Kay, who pleaded guilty in December to a charge of arson that was reckless as to whether life was endangered, gave no reaction as he was sentenced.

The court heard that he was under "enormous financial pressure", had a big ego and wanted to impress friends and family with a swanky wedding - though his property business had failed in the economic crash.

But the father-of-four resented being chased by the owners of the castle for payments and took "revenge" while drunk after they threatened to cancel his reception booking three days before the wedding unless they received £15,000 still outstanding.

Judge Roger Dutton said: "It was a miracle that nobody was either seriously hurt or killed by your actions.

"There is a long background to this - principally surrounding, it would appear, your ego.

"Having been made bankrupt and very recently discharged from that bankruptcy, you embarked upon a wedding that would involve paying a figure of approximately £25,000 for a ceremony you could nowhere near afford.

"It was all to maintain bravado with friends and family and to make it appear you could afford such largesse to friends and family and those you wanted to impress.

"In the end, you sought, and achieved, revenge against the proprietors of Peckforton Castle."

At the height of the blaze more than 100 firefighters were at the scene.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service's Keith Brooks, who was the officer in charge of the incident, welcomed the sentencing.

"Mr Kay's reckless actions put the lives of his family, friends, hotel staff and firefighters at considerable risk," he said.

"Arson is a terrible crime that costs the taxpayers thousands and more importantly it costs people their lives."

Detective Constable Jo Gooddy said: "Before the day of the wedding, staff had been having difficulty trying to get the money off Kay and experienced first-hand his aggressive and bullying nature.

"To avoid further problems and confrontations they decided costs had to be paid in full upfront, including the bar tab which covered the cost of the open bar."

Kay was heard by witnesses to say "nobody crosses Max" and that the manager who stopped his tab was "going to get it".

He also began enquiring into personal details of one of the female managers who he had issues with earlier.

"We hope that Kay has time to reflect on actions which potentially could have proved fatal, not only for his guests and staff at the hotel, but for his new wife," added the police officer.