Ten men sentenced to more than 130 years after Stoke-on-Trent fire
Detective Constable Howard Davies said the violence that evening had been “truly shocking” and had put lives at “grave risk”.
Ten men have been sentenced to more than 130 years in total after a woman was struck on the head and set on fire inside a house in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire Police has said.
A 13-year-old girl in the house suffered 15% burns to the right arm.
Seven of the men were sentenced at Leicester Crown Court, sitting at Loughborough, on 25 September 2026. Three had been sentenced earlier.
Shakil Uddin, 23, of Oldham, was jailed for 34 years after being found guilty of attempted murder and arson with intent to endanger life.
Ali Abbas, 23, and Haris Mahmood admitted two counts of attempted murder and arson with intent to endanger life. Abbas received 25 years and Mahmood 24 years and nine months.
The other sentences were:
- Riyadh Iqbal, 23 – 12 years and six months, for grievous bodily harm with intent and arson with intent to endanger life.
- Lukman Khan, 25 – 12 years and six months, for the same offences.
- Muhammad Sufyaan-Shah, 25 – 11 years and six months, for grievous bodily harm with intent.
- Tayyeb Majeed, 24 – 10 years and six months, for the same offence.
- Kashif Ahmed, 26 – 48 weeks, after pleading guilty to violent disorder.
- Bilal Ahmed, 27 – 15 months, suspended for 18 months, after pleading guilty to violent disorder.
- Naveed Hussain, 32 – six months, suspended for 18 months, after pleading guilty to violent disorder and possession of a knife blade or sharp pointed article in a public place.
Detective Constable Howard Davies, of the force’s Major Investigations Department, said the victims had endured “unimaginable physical and emotional trauma”.
How the story began
The violence began on the afternoon of 16 December 2021 with a fight on Kildare Street in Longton involving Hussain, Bilal Ahmed, Kashif Ahmed and Abbas. Kashif Ahmed was stabbed in the shoulder.
That evening, a group of men went to the house, demanding to speak to Hussain. The men smashed the downstairs windows and poured petrol into the hallway and outside the living room window.
To escape the flames, the woman and the girl smashed an upstairs window and jumped from a bedroom.
The woman, who suffered 65% burns, was not expected to survive and spent two months in a coma. Other injuries included a broken pelvis, broken ribs and a lacerated liver.
The woman had to relearn how to walk and still needs lifelong medical treatment.
The convictions followed guilty pleas and an 11-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court, which ended on 20 February 2026.
“We hope these sentences send a strong message that this kind of violence will not be tolerated, and that those responsible will be held to account,” Davies said.