Arsonists, 19 and 21, caused £1.1 million of damage as they left trail of destruction across the Sussex countryside razing houses, barns, a shed and car to the ground and left farmers fearing for their lives
- Joshua Brinkley, 19 and Connor Luck, 21, carried out a five month arson spree
- They caused £1.1 million worth of damage by starting fires near Lewes, Sussex
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A teenager and a 21-year-old have admitted causing £1.1 million worth damage in a series of arson attacks across the Sussex countryside.
Joshua Brinkley, 19, and Connor Luck, 21, left a trail of destruction throughout east and west Sussex that saw farmers fear for their lives.
The attacks, which all happened within a 20-mile radius of Lewes in East Sussex, saw farmhouses, barns, bales of hay, a shed and a car all razed to the ground.
Their five-month spree left rural communities living in fear, with locals petrified their properties would be targeted next.
Brinkley pleaded guilty to seven counts of arson and Luck, 21 pleaded guilty to two counts of arson, while charges against a third teenager were dropped.
Joshua Brinkley, 19, and Connor Luck, 21, left a trail of destruction with arson attacks on farm houses, barns, and bales of hay throughout east and west Sussex
The arsonists burnt farm houses, barns, bales of hay, a shed and a car
Joshua Brinkley, 19, (left) and Connor Luck, 21, (right) pleaded guilty to committing a series of arson attacks that left £1.1 million worth of damage in their wake
Many nearby farms even boosted their security measures by installing cameras and moving farm equipment and livestock.
The trail of terror destroyed two farmhouses, razed two barns to the ground, incinerated a car and a shed and devoured hundreds of tonnes of hay bales.
The first attack happened in June 2021 when Brinkley, who was 18 at the time, made his way to Horsham and set a farmhouse alight.
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The old building, which was empty at the time, was destroyed in the inferno that ensued.
Just a fortnight later Brinkley travelled to a second farmhouse near Haywards Heath and set fire to another farmhouse causing hundreds of thousands of pounds of damage.
At its height, eight fire engines were brought in to tackle the blaze in the East Sussex village of Wivelsfield Green, in an attack that left the building completely gutted.
As the weeks passed Brinkley changed his target to remote farm buildings and stocks of hay.
The attacks left rural communities living in fear and saw local farms take measures to boost security
The teenager and 21-year-old pleaded guilty to arson while charges against a third teenager were dropped
The arson attacks all happened within a 20-mile radius of Lewes in East Sussex
In August he torched a shed near Eastbourne and in early November Brinkley targeted a large stock of hay bales near Alfriston.
In the same month he teamed up with Luck, who was 19 at the time, and they razed a barn and its contents to the ground on the private Glynde Estate near Lewes.
Acting alone Brinkley then travelled to Newhaven and torched a barn and its hay.
Just days later Brinkley again teamed up with Luck in Lewes and set a Vauxhall Corsa ablaze, destroying it.
In total it is estimated the pair caused around £1.1million worth of damage to farms and buildings in Sussex during the five month arson spree.
The pair will be sentenced in August.
