Shocking moment husband blows up the house he and his ex-wife lived in separately following messy divorce as he faces jail for arson
- Ian Clowes, 67, lived in top flat after separating from wife Elaine two years ago
- Elaine, 63, lived on ground floor but had won legal fight to own both flats
- He was today convicted of arson after he blew Poole house up in 'revenge plot'
This is the shocking moment a house exploded after the man living there set light to it with him and his wife inside following a messy divorce.
Ian Clowes, 67, separated from his wife Elaine, 63, in 2016 and converted their marital home into two flats to sell for profit.
He was living on the upper floor of the semi-detached property while Elaine stayed downstairs, but was about to be evicted after she won ownership of the whole property, neighbours claimed at the time.
Clowes, of Poole, Dorset, set light to gas cylinders inside the building on October 22 last year, causing a huge explosion and the entire first floor to collapse.
The 67-year-old was rushed to hospital and his ex-wife suffered minor injuries.
He today pleaded guilty to arson via video link at a hearing at Bournemouth Crown Court and is now facing a lengthy stint behind bars.
The blast was captured on CCTV, with a clip showing the terrifying moment the roof was blown clean off and thick cloud of black smoke engulfed the property.
Clowes, dressed in grey prison clothing at HMP Winchester, today denied a charge of arson with intent to endanger life but admitted a lesser offence of arson being reckless as to whether life is endangered.
Pictured: The house Ian Clowes shared with his wife Elaine in Poole, Dorset after he set light to a gas cylinder inside and caused a huge explosion
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Stuart Ellacott, prosecuting, told the court that his pleas were accepted.
Robert Grey, defending, asked for psychiatric reports to be conducted into the defendant as well as a pre-sentence report by the Probation Service.
Guilty: Ian Clowes, 67, (mugshot pictured) has been convicted of arson after blowing up the home he shared with his wife in Poole, Dorset last year
Judge Peter Crabtree adjourned the case until April 12 but told Clowes he faces a lengthy prison sentence.
He said: 'This is a serious offence as you will well appreciate.
'The starting point for sentencing is a lengthy custodial one but before the judge decides it is important that a psychiatric report and pre-sentence report - which will go primarily to length of sentence - is carried out.'
According to neighbours Clowes had spent £40,000 renovating the ground floor flat following the couple's split in 2016.
He had planned to do the same to the upstairs apartment, before selling them on for a profit.
Neighbours claim she had failed to co-operate with his plan and had won ownership of the whole building.
On the day he was due to be evicted, he sought revenge, neighbours claimed.
A neighbour said at the time: 'He spent about £40,000 on doing up the downstairs flat and he was going to do the same with the upstairs and then sell them for a profit but it didn't happen.
Clowes, of Poole, Dorset, was today convicted of arson following the explosion on October 22 2018 (scene pictured after fire)
Clowes's wife Elaine, 63, is pictured the day after the explosion at her home in Poole
'He was going to let the council foreclose on him, let the place go to rack and ruin.'
Neighbour Norah Wilson, an 85-year-old retired nurse, said after the explosion: 'I heard this huge bang and ran out to help.
'There was all this smoke and the house was completely destroyed. You could smell gas.
'Debris was covering two cars in front to the house. I thought to myself how could anybody survive that.
'I saw a lady (Elaine Clowes) get into an ambulance and she seemed all right.'
Firefighters are pictured at the semi-detached property in Poole, Dorset on October 22 2018
Retired soldier Brian Wright, 80, said he was stunned to see the woman walk out of the destroyed house.
He said: 'There was a terrific, crashing noise and straight away I thought it was a gas explosion.
'I saw the woman walk out the house and she looked dazed. She was taken care of by an ambulance crew.
'The other person was gravely injured and was carried out of the remains of the house.'
It is thought that Mr Clowes had lived at the house for around 12 years and was financially comfortable due to an inheritance from his brother's estate, it is claimed.
