'It was so hot it was raining ash': Rioter accused of furniture shop blaze during London disorder appears in court

By Eddie Wrenn for MailOnline
Updated: 11:34 EST, 22 February 2012

Trial: Gordon Thompson is accused of starting the Reeves blaze

One of the defining moments of last year's riots in London was the destruction of family furniture store House of Reeves.

Today, a man appeared in court accused of starting the fire that destroyed the 145-year-old building in Croydon, south London.

Gordon Thompson, 33, is charged with setting a sofa alight at House of Reeves and causing a blaze so fierce that buildings on the opposite side of the road caught fire.

Prosecutor Oliver Glasgow told jurors at the Old Bailey that Thompson watched as others smashed the window of the store and was one of the first into the building.

He allegedly stole a laptop from the shop, and as he left asked around for a lighter, the court was told.

Mr Glasgow said: 'On leaving the store, he asked another of the rioters for a lighter and, as soon as he was given one, went back to the shop and set fire to a sofa inside the shattered window.

'The ensuing fire razed the building to the ground. Such was the ferocity of the blaze that embers and heat from the flames set fire to property on the other side of the road and numerous residents were forced to flee their homes for their lives.

Heritage destroyed: Fire crews battled desperately to save buildings nearby in London Road

Lives at risk: One young woman was forced to jump from a burning building near to the blaze at House of Reeves

'Indeed one young woman became trapped inside her flat and was forced to jump from a first-floor window into the arms of rescuers waiting below.'

The court heard that Thompson has admitted burglary of two shops in Croydon - Iceland and House of Fraser - but denies any involvement in the attack on House of Reeves.

He is on trial for violent disorder, burglary of House of Reeves, arson with intent to endanger life and arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered, all on August 8 last year.

The court heard that Thompson, of Waddon Road, Croydon, 'ran riot through the streets' that day, and a man who took a photo of him stealing bottles from Iceland feared he would be attacked.

He pretended to congratulate him for what he was doing to placate Thompson, jurors were told.

Mr Glasgow told the court: 'What you are concerned with are two separate matters: first, you need to consider the general conduct of this defendant, and the mob with whom he was associating, as he roamed lawlessly around Croydon looting and vandalising shops and frightening those who were powerless to stop him.

'Secondly you need to consider his specific conduct in relation to the furniture store, which he broke into, stole from and finally destroyed in a callous and vindictive act which endangered the lives of countless people.'

House of Reeves had stood at the site for 145 years before the arson attack, the jury was told.

Mr Glasgow said the country had seen unrest on an 'unprecedented scale' last summer, and that: 'Men and women, apparently of all ages and backgrounds, descended on the streets determined to steal what they could and set upon causing as much damage as they were able.

'The defendant is one of those rioters.'

The blaze quickly spread to other properties surrounding the Croydon store, which was completely destroyed

Firefighters finally got the blaze under control, leaving a shell of a building

Thompson denies he had anything to do with the break-in at House of Reeves, the court heard.

Mr Glasgow told jurors: 'He claims he only placed his foot just inside the broken window and that he was acting as a law-abiding citizen, trying to stop the looting and determined to bring the shocking behaviour of others to a close.

'Whether there is any truth whatsoever in his claims will be for you to judge. But once you have seen the video evidence you may wonder quite how the defendant can square his account with what he was caught on film doing.'

Two journalists first spotted Thompson as he emerged from the Iceland store carrying looted bottles and a black box at around 6.15pm, where he was caught on camera. One journalist was also present to witness the blaze at the furniture store.

Mr Glasgow added: 'The fire was well underway by the time he arrived.

'The heat was so intense and it was raining ash. He attempted to bring the fire to the attention of the residents of the nearby block of flats and the police.

'Having done so he helped move bags of towels from inside the store to underneath the windows of the flats in case any residents needed to jump to safety.

'He was present when one woman climbed out of a window and jumped into the arms of a police officer.'

Around an hour later in nearby Tamworth Road, Thompson was seen pouring petrol into the street before attempting to set light to it, the court heard.

Fires in London: A hooded youth walks past a burning vehicle in Hackney, just one of many flash-points during the riots

Looting occurred across the city, including in Walworth Road in south east London

Bus driver Flint Agyekum, who was at the wheel of the 157 Croydon to Morden service, watched in horror as he tried to allow his passengers to disembark and take his vehicle away from the disorder, jurors were told.

The bus was parked up in a side street, but was later destroyed by fire, though Thompson is not alleged to have had any part in this.

Later, jurors were shown CCTV footage of the raid at House of Fraser in which Thompson was said to be involved.

'The footage of this is truly shocking,' said Mr Glasgow.

'The mere idea that a mob could descend upon a shopping centre in broad daylight, force their way inside, terrify the security staff and leave with armfuls of stolen goods is astonishing.

'The reality is even more incredible. The mob was able to run through the centre, vandalising and looting at will with everyone, including police at first, powerless to stop them.'

Thompson can be seen watching from the other side of Tamworth Road as a group of masked men throw objects at the entrance to the Centrale centre and attempt to kick the glass from its frame.

He then enters the centre and emerges five minutes later, carrying armfuls of stolen goods.

'Precisely what he took will never be known,' said Mr Glasgow. 'But none of it was in his arms when he went into Centrale.'

At one point, Thompson can be seen 'waving and inviting' others to join in the looting before 'sauntering off' down the road as others laugh and celebrate, he added.

'People have so much they cannot even keep hold of it as they run across the road,' said the prosecutor.

Later, Thompson headed with other members of the mob towards Reeves Corner, where he torched the furniture store in an act of 'cynical cowardice', jurors were told.

Mr Glasgow said: 'Quite what it was that first attracted looters to these premises may remain a mystery since, unlike House of Fraser, which was plundered of clothing and jewellery, few of the rioters could have wanted to steal a sofa.

'It seems the attention this shop received started when one of the mob threw a piece of debris at one of the glass windows.

'Thereafter others, including this defendant, joined in until the window was smashed, torn from its housing, and the rioters managed to get inside.'

Thompson was one of the first to enter the shop and emerged carrying a laptop, the court heard.

Similar scenes: A burnt-out Carpetright building in Tottenham High Street

Another building was burned in Lavender Hill, Clapham Junction

'When others realised he had found something of value the crowd surged forward and entered the shop,' said Mr Glasgow.

'That, however, was not an end to the matter. Having vandalised and looted the store, the defendant was still not satisfied.

'In an act of cynical cowardice he went back inside the shop and set fire to one of the sofas inside the window.

'The effect, as anyone would realise and as he plainly intended, was catastrophic.

'The sofa went up in flames, as did other pieces of furniture in the showroom and within minutes the inferno was raging out of control.

'The defendant stayed at the scene to watch what he had done before the heat and flames drove he and others away.'

The 'devastating' heat of blaze set fire to neighbouring properties and even the tramlines in the street caught fire, the court heard.

Firefighters were powerless to act and all that remained of the store were the supporting walls and a pile of smouldering rubble.

'House of Reeves simply ceased to exist,' added Mr Glasgow.

'While the defendant may not have imagined the fire would take hold as it did and would leave such destruction in its wake, what the defendant intended is obvious.'

One witness, fellow painter and decorator Craig Street, had gone to the centre of Croydon to 'fight rioters and stand my ground', the court was told.

Mr Street, who filmed some of the incident on his mobile phone, is said to have seen Thompson emerge from the store with a laptop and tell others: 'Let torch the place'.

Mr Glasgow said: 'He heard the defendant ask, "Who's got a lighter?"

'A lighter was handed to him and the defendant walked back over to the shop.

'The defendant lent in through the broken window and moved his arm towards the side of a sofa that was inside the shop.

'No one else was near the defendant and when the defendant stepped back Craig Street could see smoke and flames coming from the sofa.

'These flames began to grow and he could see that the ceiling caught fire.'

Monika Konczyk, who was pictured jumping from a burning building opposite the store, also filmed some of the blaze on her mobile phone.

She had been talking on the phone to her sister and was unable to leave by the front door after the blaze took hold.

House of Reeves owner Trevor Reeves, 56, was in the crowd as his store burned, but was unable to identify any of the rioters he saw, the court was told.

Another witness, Jonathan Davis, who lives nearby, claims to have seen Thompson jogging towards him and boasting: "It was me, I did that, I burned Reeves Corner."'

Thompson was arrested after his picture appeared in a local newspaper and he was recognised by a reader. He claimed he had seen the same edition and was planning to turn himself in.

Earlier, Thompson sniggered in the dock as footage of the moment he slipped under the security shutter to loot House of Fraser was played to the court.

He was charged with looting the department store after his fingerprint was found on a display cabinet, but claimed he had only stolen one top.

Mr Glasgow told jurors: 'You have seen what he is holding when he leaves and whatever it was it was plainly more than one item of clothing.'

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