Fire Deaths: Man Guilty Of Killing Four Siblings

The family of four siblings killed in a house fire have welcomed the conviction of a man found guilty of starting a fire in a wardrobe.

Four-year-old twins Holly and Ella Smith and their two-year-old brother Jordan were asleep as the blaze took hold in Freckleton, Lancashire, while elder brother Reece, 19, was overcome by fumes as he went upstairs to try to rescue them.

All four died from the effects of smoke inhalation following the blaze on January 7 last year.

Dyson Allen, 19, was convicted of four counts of manslaughter by a jury at Preston Crown Court today. He was cleared of their murders.

The conviction was welcomed by mother Michelle Smith, Reece's father Martin Goulding and the rest of the family,

A statement read outside court said: "We are pleased that Dyson Allen has been convicted of the manslaughter of our beautiful children Reece, Holly, Ella and Jordan.

"We'll never know the reason why our children were taken from us but even knowing the answer won't bring them back.

"He had the chance to explain his actions to the police and the court but he lied from the very beginning."

The aftermath of the house fire that left four siblings dead

They thanked the emergency services and police adding: "Finally though, we would like to pay tribute to Reece who paid the ultimate price for trying to rescue his brother and sisters and for that we will be eternally grateful and proud."

In court members of the victims' family shouted "yes" in tears as the jury foreman returned each guilty verdict on the manslaughter counts.

The defendant held his hands over his eyes in shock and then wept as he leaned  forward.

Mr Justice Males told the court: "There must be no doubt that it is inevitable there will be a substantial prison sentence."

Allen was the only other person who was upstairs at the dormer bungalow when the fire broke out, said the Crown.

A birthday party was being held for the children's mother, Michelle Smith, at the address on the night of the fire.

An expert concluded the fire started in hanging clothes

The fatal fire began inside a wardrobe in the bedroom shared by the three young children and their mother.

Allen was a regular visitor  to the house and spent most of the night of January 7 in the second upstairs bedroom, according to those who were in the house, said prosecutor Neil Flewitt QC.

Ms Smith, 37, said she said remembered the lights going off and then the defendant jumped down the stairs and shouted "Fire" before he ran through the kitchen and out of the back door.

Ms Smith told police that smoke alarms had been had taken down by Reece in the days before the fire because one or both of them kept making beeping noises.

The court heard the recollection of most of the witnesses who attended the party was "affected to some extent by drink and in some cases by drugs in the form of cannabis".

It could be established though that the first 999 call to report a fire was made at 11.20pm by a neighbour.

The ruins of the bedroom in which the siblings died

And that some time after 10.45pm one of the family friends, who was sober, went up to the bedroom where Allen was.

He said the defendant appeared "drunk and stoned" after Allen had earlier told him was going to make a mix for a cannabis "bong". When he returned downstairs there was a loud bang shortly after and all the lights in the house went off.

In a witness statement given to police in the early hours of January 8 Allen claimed had discovered the fire and raised the alarm but never admitted his involvement.

He said he told Reece there was a fire and to "get those kids out".

The court heard that Reece was heard kicking at the door to the children's bedroom as others escaped from the property.

Mr Flewitt told the jury that several "extremely detailed investigations" had taken place into the cause of the fire and the unanimous view of the experts was that it was started deliberately.

The upper floor of the dormer bungalow was badly damaged by the fire

One expert concluded the fire started in the hanging clothes in the wardrobe,and the most likely source of ignition was a naked flame.

The fire was detected because of an electrical fault that caused the house electrics to trip out, he continued.

The electrical fault occurred when the fire spread from the wardrobe to a lighting unit fitted to the ceiling of the room, the jury was told.

By that time the fire would have already reached its maximum, said Mr Flewitt.

Forensic evidence showed the three children in the bedroom were likely to have been "incapacitated very quickly" but that Ella and Jordan made attempts to escape.

Sentencing was adjourned until September 27 for the preparation of psychiatric reports.

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