A man filled his house with gas and stood inside with a cigarette lighter after telling neighbours he was going to blow the place up.

Gary Roberts also told workers at the drugs and alcohol services that he was planning to cause the blast in a ‘cry for help’.

And when police arrived a judge heard that one of the officers had previously worked as a gas fitter and was Corgi registered so knew how to turn off the supply from outside.

Claire Marlow, prosecuting, told Swindon crown court how Roberts spoke to his next door neighbour on Wednesday February 25.

She said “He spoke to his neighbour in the garden effectively saying to her he wished she was at work because he wanted to fill the house with gas and blow it up.”

“The previous week he had made a similar comment. He said he would fill the house with gas, blow it up and hang himself.”

The neighbour was very concerned about what he had said and left the house to call the alcohol and drugs services which she knew he was involved with.

“He then was rung by them and he made similar comments about gas,” Miss Marlow said.

She said he told them he had turned on the gas an they told him to turn it off, which he did saying he would only turn it back on when he finished on the phone to them.

The police were then contacted and when they got to the scene the former gas fitter turned off the supply and electricity from outside the house.

“They went in and found him holding a lighter and unlit cigarette. At that time his flat was fillet with gas but the cooker was turned off,” she said.

Roberts, of Warwick Close, Chippenham, pleaded guilty to threatening behaviour.

Jonathan Stanniland, defending, said his client had been in custody on remand for 159 days which was the equivalent of a nine month sentence.

At an earlier hearing the court was told that the episode had been a ‘cry for help’ by Roberts.

Passing sentence Judge Douglass Field said “The actions that you took on the day in question must have been extremely frightening to the people immediately involved.

“It was with great good fortune that the police officer who visited your premises had that previous experience and was able to cope with a house filled with gas and you standing there with a cigarette lighter.

“I have read a lot about you, a psychiatric report and for many years a deep seated alcohol problem.

“Bearing in mind all the circumstances including your plea of guilty I propose to deal with this by way of a community order.”

He told him he would be under supervision for a year and also have to undergo alcohol treatment.