Arsonist boasts place was 'like Blackpool illuminations' after torching house and Hamilton salon

A callous arsonist who set fire to a house and Hamilton hair and beauty salon boasted about the place being lit up "like Blackpool Illuminations" when he left.

Lewis Connor, 27, from Barrhead in Renfrewshire, was found guilty after trial of taking part in the deliberate attack on May 11, 2020.

Connor was charged with two charges of wilfully setting fire in relation to the property in Bonnybridge, near Falkirk, and the salon in Hamilton, and one charge of conspiring to set fire to various properties and motor vehicles.

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Damage to Cece Beauty and neighbouring businesses Bothwell Dress Company and FTT Skin Care, on Bothwell Road, ran into thousands of pounds while he caused substantial damage to the Bonnybridge property, two days earlier.

He was sentenced to three years in jail at Hamilton Sheriff Court on Friday, July 5.

Officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) worked with Police Scotland and arrested Connor in November 2020. Investigators found that he was using an Encrochat handle to communicate with others regarding his crimes.

In one encrypted message sent by Connor after he torched the property in Bonnybridge, he said "the place was like Blackpool illuminations when I left."

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Donnie Lawrie, from the NCA, said: "Lewis Connor used Encrochat to boast about his crimes, thinking he was not in the sights of law enforcement. Unfortunately for him, we were able to access his messages and used them to link him to these incidents that destroyed the property of local residents.

"The NCA will continue to work with our partners in the OCP to bring Connor and criminals like him to justice."

Detective Inspector Alan Cuthbert, from Police Scotland, said: "Connor deliberately targeted these premises with total disregard to whether anyone was inside and fortunately no-one was injured, however the outcome could have been very different.

"Although there were no injuries, a fire within residential premises can have long-lasting effects for the residents and in commercial premises it affects the owner’s livelihood."

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