Diversity is strength alert!
Looks like Canada got a vibrant ‘new Canadian’ when they gave this one citizenship!
From thespec.com (Hat tip: ‘pungentpeppers’):
A 62-year-old man has been sentenced to two years in jail for dousing his Bold Street high-rise apartment with gasoline and setting it on fire.
The December 2011 fire triggered an emergency rescue of tenants, including seniors, that sent four Hamilton police officers to the hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation.
Rudolf Balogh was sentenced Friday within hours of pleading guilty to arson endangering life.
[….]
The fire caused an explosion that knocked out windows and sent shattered glass across the street, Reid said, adding damage was in excess of $100,000.
He came to Canada in 1999 and had his last job in 2000! So he worked for a year until he figured out how to get on disability! Yet, they say he has poor “coping skills.”
Balogh came to Canada as a refugee claimant in 1999 and was granted Canadian citizenship in 2010. He was married twice and has five children.
His last job was in 2000 and he has received government assistance since 2001 under the Ontario Disability Support Program because of health issues including heart problems, diabetes, colon cancer, a leg injury and mental health.
The psychiatrist report said Balogh attempted suicide many times, suffers from depression and has poor coping skills. The fire, the report said, was a result of a major depressive episode and a cry for help.
He only has 8 months left on his sentence before he is out in public again! Take comfort though—he has been forbidden matches! This is not a joke, but it is an idea for a comedy skit!
Balogh, who appeared in court in a wheelchair and with a Hungarian interpreter, has been in custody off and on since arrested in Jan. 2012 because he twice breached his bail conditions.
Charges on the breaches were yet to be dealt with and there was no information on what the breaches were.
Carpenter-Gunn sentenced him to two years, but gave him credit for 16 months for his time in custody — leaving him eight months to still serve. This will be followed by three years of probation. [Here is a novel idea—how about deportation!—ed]
He was also ordered to provide a DNA sample, ordered not to possess any matches, lighters or incendiary devices, or firearms, and to stay away from the apartment building property manager and the taxi driver.
For more news on Canada’s refugee problems, see our Canada category here.