A MAN who has admitted recklessly starting a fire in a disused pub, will be sentenced after psychiatric assessment into the risk of him repeating such acts.

Aaron Christopher Adams pleaded ‘guilty’ to a charge of arson, being reckless as to whether life was endangered, arising from a blaze at the boarded up Goldmine pub, in Cowley Street, Shotton Colliery, County Durham, between February 24 and 27.

During a short plea hearing at Durham Crown Court, 21-year-old Adams, appearing via video link from the city’s nearby prison, also admitted charges of burglary and criminal damage, at separate flats at the Stonham Housing Association premises, in Station Road, Shotton Colliery, where he lived at the time.

Adams will remain in custody, pending the preparation of pre-sentence reports, until the next hearing at the court, on Thursday, May 11.