A man who attempted to murder his former partner by setting a house on fire, killing her sister and three young children in the process, is now facing a life sentence after being found guilty by a court. Sharaz Ali, 40, was convicted of four counts of murder and one count of attempted murder following a trial at Doncaster Crown Court. The victims were Bryonie Gawith, 29, and her three children, nine-year-old Denisty Birtle, five-year-old Oscar Birtle, and 22-month-old Aubree Birtle, who all died in the blaze at a house on Westbury Road in Bradford in August 2024.
The court heard that Ali was “motivated by jealousy” after his former partner, Antonia, ended their abusive relationship and moved into the home with her sister Bryonie. Prosecutor David Brooke KC told the court that Ali, along with Calum Sunderland, 26, and Mohammed Shabir, 45, drove from Keighley to the house shortly before 2am after stopping to buy a seven-litre can of petrol. Ring doorbell footage captured Ali instructing Sunderland, who was carrying the petrol and a lighter, to “kick the door in,” before he ran back to the car.
Antonia, who had returned from a late shift at Tesco and was upstairs with Bryonie, was woken by the noise and began to walk downstairs when she saw the front door being kicked in. She encountered Ali inside the house as he poured petrol over her and the surroundings. “She fought with him trying to stop him and to get the petrol and lighter off him and then ran outside, screaming for help, hoping that he would follow her out,” Mr Brooke said. “She quickly realised that he hadn’t followed her and so she ran back to the house.”
By the time Antonia returned, Bryonie had woken and kicked Ali as he walked upstairs. “She managed to wrestle the container from him but he lit the lighter and a fire started including himself, the stairs and her sister,” the prosecutor told the court. Antonia was forced outside and was unable to re-enter the house as the fire rapidly took hold. She ran to the back but could not open the jammed door despite kicking it.
Footage played to jurors showed Antonia running outside screaming for help as Shabir and Sunderland drove away before the fire “exploded into life.” Emergency services were called at around 2am, but by the time police arrived six minutes later, flames were engulfing the front of the house and it was too late to save Bryonie and the children. Mr Brooke said some footage had been muted because it may have captured screaming. “It’s possible that one was woken by the noise going on and was frightened by the sound of the explosion,” he said, adding that when firefighters eventually entered the house, the children were all found still in their beds.
Ali himself was rescued from the burning building by police, badly injured, and later placed in an induced coma for months. When he recovered and was interviewed by investigators, he chose to make no comment in response to all questions. The prosecutor said Ali was “fuelled by drink and drugs” and acted out of revenge against Antonia “regardless of the potential consequences for others.”
“We, the prosecution, say that when you look at what he did, there is only one sensible conclusion that can be reached,” Mr Brooke told the jury. “That he went to the house at 2am intending to kill at least Antonia Gawith by burning the house down. Tragically, he killed her sister and three small children and there is some evidence to suggest that he was also deliberately targeting Antonia’s family.”
The court also heard that in the days before the fire, Ali had sent threatening messages to Antonia, including, “I know who caused this in my life and deep down you do too,” and another referring to “You and your whore sister.” Mr Brooke said these texts clearly set out “the anger, the resentment, the self-pity, the drunkenness, the threats,” adding that Ali “must have known” the children were in the house and “didn’t care who was there, he wanted to inflict maximum damage on anyone he could find in that house.”
Calum Sunderland was cleared of murder but found guilty of four counts of manslaughter for his role in breaking into the house. Mohammed Shabir, who had been charged alongside the others, died of a heart attack after collapsing in prison before the trial concluded. Ali is due to be sentenced at a later date and is expected to receive a life term.
#Man #guilty #murd3ring #partner #children #revenge #house #fire #attack
Leave a Reply