Justin Yang successfully prosecutes arson attack on a caravan that led to the death of a dog by fire.

Justin represented the Crown in prosecuting a female defendant for aggravated arson and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal. She had been staying over at the complainant’s caravan in a caravan site. Also present was the complainant’s 4-year-old cocker spaniel.

They had been in a tumultuous relationship for 16 years. There was an argument one evening which led to the complainant leaving the site with the defendant and his dog remaining behind. The next day, the defendant rang him to inform him that his caravan was on fire. The fire spread quickly, and the caravan burned down. The neighbouring caravans began to melt. The neighbours had luckily come to turn off the gas and electrics for the caravans to prevent further spreading of the fire. The defendant at the time was inside the caravan with the dog. The neighbours were unable to find the defendant or the dog due to the smoke, although the dog was heard barking.

Shortly afterwards, the defendant was seen near a window and pulled out by the neighbours. She had stopped breathing by then. She was resuscitated by paramedics. The firefighters attended to extinguish the fire. They found the charred remains of the dog inside.

The defendant’s account was that she had locked the dog in his cage and had fallen asleep. She woke up to the fire already ablaze. She crawled out of the window before losing consciousness. Justin’s case for the Crown was built on circumstantial evidence. In his cross-examination, he undermined the defendant’s credibility, and put to her various threats that the defendant had previously made to the complainant when intoxicated weeks prior to this incident. There was no direct evidence that the Defendant caused the fire.

Following a two-week trial at Guildford Crown Court, the jury unanimously convicted the defendant of arson and causing unnecessary suffering to the dog.

Justin was instructed by the Crown Prosecution Service. He is a Grade 3 prosecutor on the RASSO (rape and serious sexual offences) list.