A man has admitted burning down a £320,000 house belonging to him and his ex-wife - before trying to kill himself.

Paul Duffy appeared at Leicester Magistrates' Court yesterday to admit to a charge of arson at his home in Ratby, Leicestershire.

The emergency services were called to a blaze at the property in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

A man has admitted burning down a £320,000 house belonging to him and his ex-wife - before trying to kill himself

Ali Zaki, prosecuting, said: '[His house] is almost completely destroyed. The fire caused an explosion at the property and the house next door was damaged, although no-one was inside the address.'

The court was told Duffy, 57, had left the area after starting the fire but later returned to the scene, where he gave himself up to Leicestershire Police officers and was arrested.

Mr Zaki said: 'In interview he made a full and frank admission of his role in starting the fire. He told officers he had been extremely upset about his divorce from his ex-wife.

'The defendant said [after burning down his home] he then tried to take his own life. After, he returned to the address and told officers what he had done.'

The emergency services were called to a blaze at the property in the early hours of Tuesday morning

The court was told Duffy, 57, had left the area after starting the fire but later returned to the scene, where he gave himself up to Leicestershire Police officers and was arrested

Magistrates heard that Duffy had 'never troubled the police before' and has no previous convictions.

In mitigation, his defence solicitor David Rhodes said: 'We've heard what he did and concede that this is an offence where significant damage was caused to the property.'

Duffy's wife co-owns the property but has moved away from the area to start a new life. Duffy's name is also on the mortgage, but the house was not insured so nothing will be paid out.

Duffy will be sentenced by Leicester Crown Court next month.

Neighbours told Leicestershire firefighters they had feared Duffy was inside the building at the time

He was bailed to reside at the home of his sister in Hinckley, and he will have to wear an electronic tag to enforce a 7pm and 7am curfew.

Other conditions include not having any contact with his former wife and reporting daily to Hinckley Police Station.

Homes on Duffy's street were evacuated during Tuesday's fire, as six crews from fire stations across the city and county fought the blaze.

Neighbours told Leicestershire firefighters they had feared Duffy was inside the building at the time.

The house was ruled to be unsafe and had to be demolished later that day. Ratby Primary School was also closed on Tuesday due to the incident.

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