A MAN who set fire to his cell at HMP Berwyn in Wrexham has been jailed for a further two-and-a-half years.

Wayne Andrew Bromley, 43, started the fire on November 11 last year and his cellmate feared he would die.

He banged on the cell door shouting “he is trying to kill us”, Mold Crown Court was told.

Judge Niclas Parry said all inmates and staff should feel safe in the prison environment.

He told Bromley: “Your cellmate was trapped. He was screaming and feared that he was doing to die.”

The cell filled with thick, black smoke.

“You put at risk over 2,000 people in what is Europe’s largest prison."

The judge said he took into account Bromley’s mental state at the time but said it was a very serious offence.

Bromley was serving a five-and-a-half year sentence for drugs offences and the latest sentence is consecutive which means it is now an eight year sentence.

Prosecutor David Mainstone said Bromley was subject to an assessment in custody plan due to his mental health.

But he did not want the visits he received and had threatened to set fire to his cell.

That day fire detection equipment sounded and staff donned respiratory equipment to deal with the emergency.

The fire service was called out.

A cell mate had been banging on the cell door shouting that Bromley was trying to kill them and flames could be seen coming from under the door.

An investigation showed Bromley had smashed the iPad he had been provided with for rehabilitation purposes and used the wiring and his vape to set fire to come tissue.

Henry Hills, defending, told the court that his client pleaded guilty to arson on a reckless basis which had been accepted by the prosecution.

A psychiatric report had highlighted some of his client's issues.

Last month he admitted arson in damaging by fire a smoke detector and a laptop computer belonging to HMP Berwyn.