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24-year-old lit a man on fire just 'for fun'

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24-year-old lit a man on fire just 'for fun'

A 24-year-old who lit a sleeping man on fire was convicted of assault after a video of the incident was posted on Facebook.

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The incident took place in July 2011 when a man woke up in an apartment in Linköping, south Sweden to discover that he had red patches on his back, reported local newspaper Östgöta Correspondenten (Corren).

At first he thought it was some kind of allergic reaction but when the redness spread he went to the emergency ward where he was told it was, in fact, a burn.

It was not until the man saw a video clip on Facebook that he realized what had happened.

The clip showed the convicted 24-year-old spraying perfume on the sleeping man which he then lit on fire.

According to a district court, the 24-year-old sprayed and lit a flammable liquid on the sleeping man three times. He watched the liquid burn without attempting to put the fire out.

The court judged that the man must have realized that his victim would suffer skin burns.

Before setting the perfume on fire, the 24-year-old made sure his victim was asleep and defenceless by hitting him with a pillow.

The prosecutor sought a tougher penalty than the 24-year-old eventually received.

He pleaded innocent but was found guilty of assault and ordered to 180 days of supervision with community service. He must also pay 18,000 kronor ($2,800) in damages.

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