A man has been sentenced to 20 years after causing an explosion at a furniture store injuring more than 80 people.

Pascal Blasio, of William Street, Rainham, was found guilty of causing a massive explosion in a botched insurance job.

Watch the moment a blast rips through furniture shop

The gas blast ripped apart the shop in the Wirral in March 2017, which left 81 people hurt and scattered debris across the street.

A total of 63 properties in the area of New Ferry were damaged.

A jury at Liverpool Crown Court found the 57-year-old guilty of causing an explosion likely to endanger life, plus another charge of fraud in relation to an insurance claim made after the blast.

Blasio, the owner and director of Homes in Style, denied the offences but was convicted on Monday, October 14.

An original hearing held in January folded after a jury failed to reach verdicts after four weeks.

A 21-year-old man sitting at a bus stop outside the shop was the worst injured. He suffered multiple fractures, a serious brain injury and injuries to his lungs and kidney.

Judge Thomas Teague QC said: “This was a complex, difficult and somewhat sensitive case, and I commend the police and the fire service for the diligent and painstaking way in which they carried it out."

Assistant Chief Constable Natalie Perischine of Merseyside Police, said: “Blasio has brazenly continued to deny his involvement in the explosion which has totally devastated the lives of dozens of people and had a huge and lasting impact on the community of New Ferry.

“I hope that today means the people of New Ferry can now start to draw a line under that night and start to rebuild their lives knowing that Blasio will spend a considerable amount of time paying for his greedy and selfish actions in prison.

“This prosecution would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of the team of detectives who have worked on this case, viewing hundreds of hours of CCTV footage and taking over 750 statements, including 115 victim impact statements, in order to bring a successful prosecution."

At a previous hearing the company which supplied the gas to the property, Contract Natural Gas (CNG), pleaded guilty to an offence under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

It was fined a total of £320,000 and ordered to pay £50,000 towards the prosecution costs.

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