Drug gang jailed for torching widower's Ferndale home while she slept

Members of a drug gang have been jailed for torching an elderly woman's home while she slept and causing more than £750,000 worth of damage. Widow Carol Ford, 82, escaped her house in Ferndale, Rhondda Cynon Taf, barefoot and in a nightie when it was targeted by arsonists over her grandsons' drug debts. Cardiff Crown Court heard the gang was caught on CCTV wearing balaclavas and hooded tops before starting the fire at the front door and window. After previously pleading guilty to offences relating to the incident, four men appeared for sentencing, with a judge describing their actions as "nothing short of evil". Connor Pitt, 24, Auryn Guster, 19, and Alfie Wheeler, 19, all of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, pleaded guilty to arson with intent to endanger life. Lewis Manito, 33, also of Weston-super-Mare, pleaded guilty to arson, being reckless as to whether life was endangered and perverting the course of justice. The court heard that Carol Ford is a widow who had lived at the house for 61 years before it was targeted after her grandsons Matthew and Gavin Ford had a drug debt of £137,000. Their mother had received a threatening text message from a member of an organised crime gang in