A Liverpool drug dealer who ordered a petrol attack on a residential home that killed two elderly and entirely innocent people has been handed a life sentence, with a minimum of 25 years to serve before he can be considered for parole.
Kevin Weetman, 34, of Croxteth Drive in Sefton Park, was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court after a jury found him guilty of two counts of manslaughter. He also received a concurrent 16-year term for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs.
Sheila Jackson, 83, and Eric Greener, 77, died days after a fire was deliberately started at their home on South John Street in St Helens shortly after midnight on 15 July 2025. The couple, described in court as having no involvement with police and no connection to criminal activity, were rescued from the blaze by firefighters and paramedics but could not survive their injuries.
The court heard that Weetman had ordered the attack as punishment after Ms Jackson’s son refused to sell drugs for him. Wanting to make an example of the family, Weetman instructed associate Kylie Maynard, 47, of Rydal Street in Everton, to arrange the attack. Maynard then directed Paul Smith, then 40, and Lee Owens, 46, to travel from Liverpool to St Helens by motorbike, carrying petrol to start the fire.
Smith later confessed his involvement to a friend before being found dead on 22 July 2025, one week after the blaze.
CCTV footage placed Smith and Owens travelling to and from the scene, while phone records linking all four individuals before and after the fire, alongside witness accounts, formed the basis of the prosecution’s case. Merseyside Police opened a murder investigation after fire scene analysis confirmed the blaze had been set deliberately.
All three defendants denied their roles at trial. On 17 January 2026, the jury at Liverpool Crown Court returned not guilty verdicts on the murder charges but found Weetman, Maynard and Owens guilty of manslaughter, concluding that while they caused the deaths, there was no proven intent to kill.
Alongside Weetman’s life sentence, Maynard was jailed for 23 years for her two manslaughter convictions, with a concurrent eight-year term for the drugs conspiracy. Owens was sentenced to 13 years and six months for his role in the fatal attack.
Senior Crown Prosecutor Mairead Neeson of CPS Mersey-Cheshire’s Complex Casework Unit said the case was both complex and tragic, and that Weetman had set events in motion purely to demonstrate his authority as a drug dealer. She said the thoughts of the prosecution team remain with the families of both victims.
Under the terms of his sentence, Weetman will be at least 59 years old before he becomes eligible to be considered for release. Maynard and Owens will also serve substantial prison terms for their respective roles in carrying out and coordinating the attack.
