Malcolm Stewart, Former MoD Worker, Jailed For Trying To Blow Up Ex-Girlfriend's Car

Former Ministry Of Defence Worker Jailed For Trying To Blow Up Ex-Girlfriend's Car

A former Ministry of Defence worker who tried to blow up his ex-girlfriend's car has been jailed.

Malcolm Stewart, 44, made petrol bombs at home and targeted his former partner after a row over money, Cambridgeshire Police said.

He travelled 190 miles from his home in Bristol to Houghton, St Ives, where he had lived with the woman, in February 2010.

He placed four homemade devices under her car and in the wheel arches. The bombs were made of plastic bottles filled with petrol and cotton wool.

When the woman drove the car the following day she discovered one still attached - the other three had fallen off.

Stewart, of Adelante Close, Bristol, was arrested and his home searched. Officers found evidence linking him to the devices and a police-style baton was discovered in his vehicle.

He was convicted of attempted arson with intent to cause damage and possessing an offensive weapon following a trial at Peterborough Crown Court and was yesterday jailed for five years and two months.

Detective Constable Hollie Daines, who led the investigation, said: "This was a pre-planned attempt to terrify his former partner.

"The devices had the potential to explode, with devastating consequences, not only to the driver of the car, but also anyone who might have been nearby.

"It was only through sheer luck that no-one was seriously injured or killed as a result of his actions."

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