Man appears in court over arson incident in North Yorkshire GP surgery involving a knife

A man has appeared in court after being accused of setting fire to a North Yorkshire GP surgery with the intent to danger life.

Police were called to the village of Ampleforth, near York, at 12:25pm on Tuesday 29 August to report of a man who had damaged the surgery by setting fire to it and assaulting a member of staff. He was also in possession of a knife and indicated that he intended to harm himself.

Emergency services attended the scene, a cordon was put in place to protect members of the public, and police officers negotiated with the suspect, 62-year-old John Leadbitter, to help resolve the situation safely.

At around 1:35pm police officers restrained Leadbitter and he was arrested and taken into custody.   

The fire was extinguished by firefighters from North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service.

No serious injuries were reported.

Leadbitter was charged with arson with intent to endanger life, assault causing actual bodily harm, affray and possession of a knife.

He will next appear at York Crown Court on 9 October.

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