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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Sam Elliott-Gibbs & James Llewelyn

Moment woman pours petrol over house with two young kids inside trying to start fire

This is the horrifying moment a woman attempts to set fire to a family home with two young children inside.

Talisa Windsor is today starting a prison sentence after dousing the front of the property with petrol before trying to set it ablaze.

The 30-year-old has been jailed after she was caught pouring nearly four litres of fuel she had stolen from a nearby Texaco on the front of the house in Hove, East Sussex.

Prosecutors said it was a miracle the flammable cocktail didn't ignite with possibly devastating consequences as she begins a six-year sentence.

CCTV footage released by Sussex Police shows her stealing the petrol before she later lobs the bomb filled with fuel and tissue paper at the door.

Talisa Windsor, 30, was sentenced to six years for the terrifying incident (Sussex Police)

The shocking clip begins with Windsor filling up a jerry can with petrol at the pump before she makes off without paying.

It then switches to the home where the woman - wearing a grey tracksuit - can be seen throwing the bomb at the property before scurrying off.

Chichester Crown Court heard that she tried to set it on fire by filling a broken bottle with more petrol.

She throws her bomb at the home in Sussex (Sussex Police/Youtube)

During the hearing, a judge heard that during the incident, which took place on May 11 last year, she threw a bottle through a front window of the house in Moyne Close, Hove, East Sussex.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said: "Police were called after members of the public reported smelling petrol and Windsor was witnessed filling the bottle with petrol nearby.

"She was swiftly arrested while officers went to the Moyne Close address to ensure the safety of the occupants, who had escaped. Windsor was also caught on CCTV stealing the petrol and carrying out the attack.

She was found guilty of attempted arson reckless as to endangering life (Sussex Police/Youtube)

"It was later revealed that Windsor had sent a number of threatening messages to the occupants, who were known to her, in the days leading up to the incident - including several death threats."

Windsor, of Amberley Drive, Hove, was convicted of attempted arson reckless as to whether it endangered life. A judge handed her a six-year jail sentence, with a further three years on an extended licence.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Rose Horan says she could have caused death by her actions.

She was seen filling up a jerrycan before heading for the house (Sussex Police/Youtube)

DC Horan said: "This was an extremely disturbing incident which threatened the lives of a family with two young children, who were inside the house when Talisa Windsor attempted to set it alight.

"CCTV showed that the cigarette lighter did ignite, so it was extremely lucky that the 3.7L of petrol around the front door did not go up in flames. Had that happened, we could have been looking at a tragic outcome.

"Nonetheless, Judge Stuart Trimmer found Windsor met the criteria for a dangerous offender and passed an extended sentence.

"I would like to thank the victims, witnesses and everybody who supported the investigation for their help in bringing a dangerous individual to justice."

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