Men who set fire to grandmother's house over feud back in court

Alfie Wheeler (left) and Auryn Gustur (right) appeared back in court on Thursday(Image: South Wales Police)

Arsonists who set fire to a pensioner's home in a targeted attack over an unpaid drug debt have appeared in court again after they were found to be supplying cocaine and cannabis. They and two other men poured petrol from canisters through the pensioner's letterbox and window in the middle of the night.

Auryn Gustur, 20, and Alfie Wheeler, 20, were sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court in April, along with Connor Pitt and Lewis Manito, for the arson attack which happened at the home of grandmother Carol Ford in Protheroe Street in Ferndale, Rhondda, where the defendants had travelled to from Weston-super-Mare.

On Thursday morning Gustur and Wheeler were back in the dock at Cardiff Crown Court for a sentencing hearing which was told how police officers attended the homes of both defendants following their arrests for the arson and found drug paraphernalia including traces of cocaine and cannabis, and packaging which had been used to hold substances measured in kilograms.

Their mobile phones were seized and were found to contain messages which suggested they were working together to build up a drug supply business between November 2024 and July 2025.

M4 police incident stops all traffic near Cardiff

Martin Lewis tells all UK households to do one thing at 4.15pm on Thursday

The defendants' roles were categorised as "street dealers" who were selling drugs for financial gain. Both men later pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of controlled drugs of class A and B.

On Thursday Judge Paul Hobson sentenced both Gustur and Wheeler to 32 months detention in a young offenders institute, to be served concurrently with their sentences for the arson.

Gustur, of Russell Avenue in Weston-super-Mare, is already serving a sentence of 10 years and six months imprisonement, with an extended licence period of five years, for the arson, while Wheeler, of Hosegood Drive in Weston-super-Mare, is serving eight years imprisonment for arson, with an extended licence period of five years.

The aftermath of the fire at a property on Protheroe Street, Ferndale(Image: John Myers)

The court heard how in July last year the four men travelled from the seaside town near Bristol in two vehicles. Manito drove Pitt while Gustur and Wheeler were driven by Wheeler's partner, Storm Truman, who the court heard was being kept in the dark about the reason for the journey.

Mrs Ford's house was targeted over a £137,000 drug debt her grandsons Matthew and Gavin Ford owed.

The two cars then met up and Pitt left Manito's vehicle with a petrol can. Truman then drove them to Ferndale and Manito stayed in the area for support before disposing of his van, the court heard.

In the early hours of July 28, 2025, the three men approached Mrs Ford's house wearing balaclavas with two petrol canisters.

One was thrown through the letterbox and the other through a window which they smashed while Gustur filmed the incident. Mrs Ford's house, where she had lived for more than 60 years, was completely destroyed.

Three cars were also gutted and destroyed by the blaze, and the fire service had to battle hard to save neighbouring properties while neighbours had to leave their homes in the middle of the night.

The damage to the properties was valued at £771,750, excluding the cost of the three vehicles damaged outside the property.

Get daily breaking news updates on your phone by joining our WhatsApp community here. We occasionally treat members to special offers, promotions and ads from us and our partners. See our Privacy Notice.

Choose Wales Online as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.