"It was clear he was quite drunk and he was asked to leave."
An assistant manager was jailed for two years for setting fire to his own hotel after being kicked out of a party for making people “uncomfortable”.
In April 2023, Vimal Verma forced nearly 50 people to be evacuated in the middle of the night after starting the fire at the Killin Hotel by Loch Tay in Scotland.
At Falkirk Sheriff Court, it was heard that the live-in assistant operations manager had been seen “acting weirdly” after being asked to leave a birthday party in the staff accommodation because of his behaviour.
He had only recently been hired on a trial basis.
Prosecutor James Moncrieff said the staff member whose birthday it was had cleaned up and closed the bar at 11:30 pm before inviting colleagues, including Verma, up to her room for a few drinks.
As the party continued, Verma’s behaviour “began to make the others feel uncomfortable”.
Mr Moncrieff said: “It was clear he was quite drunk and he was asked to leave.”
At 2:56 am, Verma was caught on camera leaving his room, entering the front foyer and walking to a cycle storage area.
A “bright flickering light” then appeared while Verma was in the bike storage area.
Mr Moncrieff continued: “An item was seen being placed on top of the bicycles and a shadow could be seen moving around as the light intensified.”
Verma was seen on CCTV “calmly” watching the fire and moments later, the bicycle storage area was “well ablaze”.
A staff member checked the hotel CCTV and saw smoke coming from the reception area.
Other staff members rushed to the scene and found Verma “looking at the fire while swinging his arms back and forth”.
Mr Moncrieff added: “The accused appeared startled by the arrival of the other members of staff.
“They asked him what he was doing and he replied, ‘nothing’.”
The fire alarms activated and the fire cut the hotel’s electrical supply.
Sleeping guests were evacuated as emergency services were called and staff began to battle the blaze with fire extinguishers.
Verma was described as “still acting weird, and asking the guests what had happened”.
Police arrested him while firefighters said wicker chairs stacked against the storage area’s wall had been deliberately set on fire.
Mr Moncrieff said: “The total value of the property destroyed was £2,600 but the fire had the potential to endanger the lives of the hotel occupants if it had spread unchecked.”
According to a social enquiry report, Verma posed a high risk of harm.
Ken Dalling, defending, said Verma had been isolated in the remote Highlands village of Killin and had felt he didn’t fit in.
Mr Dalling said: “He bitterly regrets his poor decision-making.”
Verma was jailed for two years after pleading guilty to wilful fire-raising, setting fire to a quantity of wicker chairs, damaging the chairs and two bikes, together with luggage attached to the bikes, and causing flames and smoke to fill a conservatory and the reception area at the hotel.
He was also found to have caused the hotel to be evacuated, putting all people in danger.
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