A teenager who dared his friend to put a lit firework through the letterbox of a house, killing an elderly woman inside, has been found guilty of manslaughter.

Josephine Smith, 88, is believed to have been sleeping when the Megaburst firework set her home ablaze on 28 October 2021.

On Friday, 19-year-old Kai Cooper was found guilty of her manslaughter, as well as arson with recklessness as to whether life was in danger.

Prosecutor Heidi Stonecliffe KC said Cooper had been with a younger boy, now 17, when he entered a fireworks shop in Romford, east London, earlier that evening.

He told the shopkeeper he wanted “something that is going to go far and quick”, also telling his girlfriend: “I’m trying to get fireworks, let them off at people – people are going to get terrorised tonight”.

Cooper also bought two lighters from a nearby Co-op shop before he and his friend walked towards Queens Park Road in Harold Wood, where Mrs Smith lived alone.

Along the way, they set off fireworks in the street, even aiming them at pedestrians, the Old Bailey heard.

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As they stood across the road from Mrs Smith’s house, the younger boy – who cannot be named for legal reasons – took the Megaburst firework, ran over and put it through her letterbox.

There were two explosions which caused a fire and ripped through Mrs Smith’s house, Ms Stonecliffe said.

“By the time the fire service had arrived, the property had filled with smoke and Mrs Smith was found, already sadly deceased, in the upstairs bedroom of the house,” she added.

A post-mortem exam found she had died from smoke inhalation.

‘Tragically random’

The elderly woman did not know the two boys, with Ms Stonecliffe saying the incident was “tragically random”.

There was no dispute that Cooper and the other boy had bought fireworks and lighters that night – paid for by Cooper – and that one of them was put through Mrs Smith’s door, the prosecutor said.

What the jury had to decide, however, was whether Cooper was party to the offences by encouraging and assisting the younger boy, who had previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter, arson with recklessness as to whether life was endangered and affray.

Cooper’s girlfriend had said in a statement that he laughed as the younger boy ran across the road to Mrs Smith’s house, with Ms Stonecliffe saying: “It was her view that (the boy) would not have put the firework through the door if Kai had not suggested it”.

‘Haunted our entire family’

Mrs Smith’s son Alan said after Cooper’s conviction that losing her “in such a horrible way” had “haunted our entire family”.

He added: “The issue surrounding the sale of fireworks to the public is a fight that we intend to continue.

“In addition, the irresponsible way those fireworks were sold on that night haunts all of us that have seen the footage.

“The huge support we have had from the Harold Wood community has been amazing.

“The fire fighters that attended that night are absolute heroes – they, without doubt, risked their lives to try and save mum.

“They all deserve so much more.

‘The most devastating consequences’

“The professionalism, commitment, compassion, and warmth from every officer involved has been commendable.

“A first class team without whom this nightmare would have been so much harder. We really can’t thank them enough.”

Cooper, from Leatherhead, Surrey, was remanded in custody.

He and the younger boy, from Southend, will both be sentenced at a later date.

Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command said: “The thoughtlessness of the actions which unfolded that night are incomprehensible, and tragically resulted in the most devastating consequences.

“Mrs Smith’s family continue to struggle to come to terms with their loss and our thoughts remain with them, especially today.”

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