Paul Smith died only a week after starting the fire which killed 77-year-old Eric Greener and 83-year-old Sheila Jackson
20:00, 17 Feb 2026Updated 20:09, 17 Feb 2026
Paul Smith, also known as ‘Smigger’, from Croxteth(Image: Merseyside Police)
A man who started a fire which killed an elderly couple was found dead in a wheelie bin a week later after “taking a lot of drugs” and having a bath, the ECHO understands. Eric Greener, 77, and Sheila Jackson, 83, died following an arson attack at their home on South John Street in St Helens on July 15 last year.
While one of the men responsible for the blaze, Paul Smith, was found dead himself only a week later, Kevin Weetman, Kylie Maynard and Lee Owens have been on trial at Liverpool Crown Court accused of murdering the pensioners. The latter admitted having acted as a lookout as the fire was set, although his co-defendants denied having any involvement in the plot.
With Sheila’s son George Jackson, who also lived at the address, was said to have been the intended victim in a row over drugs, Owens instead claimed Smith had torched the house as a result of a personal dispute between the two men. This was said to have related to his belief his target had “taken the p***” when Maynard, who the arsonist had reportedly been involved with sexually, had stayed at his house after being “taxed” of cocaine and money.
While Owens pleaded guilty to manslaughter in advance of the trial, he maintained he believed the property was empty at the time of the incident and claimed he did not intend to injure or kill. He, Maynard and Weetman were all cleared of two counts of murder by a jury of six men and six women this afternoon, Tuesday, although the latter two were unanimously convicted of manslaughter.
Mr Justice Jay, the High Court judge who presided over the case, remarked that each count in Weetman’s case could carry a “range of up to 24 years” alone and told his counsel Peter Wright KC: “I think your client is very dangerous. He qualifies for a discretionary life sentence, or, at the very least, an extended sentence.”
Weetman and Owens were seen smiling and laughing with one another after the verdict was returned after 11 hours and 57 minutes of deliberations, while Maynard showed no reaction. They will now be sentenced on Thursday.
Merseyside Police previously said in a statement that Smith, from Croxteth, was found dead after emergency services were called to an address on Thirlmere Road in Everton shortly before 9.30am on Tuesday, July 22 2025. Nigel Power KC later told the trial of Maynard, Weetman and Owens that the crown’s case was “not that his death was the responsibility of any of the defendants”, and that he had “died as a result of a drugs overdose”.
However, the prosecution silk added in the absence of the jury on January 22: “This is what happened. Mr Smith took an awful lot of drugs. He was found or ended up in a bath. There was some water in his lungs. Drowning cannot be excluded. But he was reported to the police as having been placed in a situation outside the house, details of which I do not propose to reveal, which are undignified. It is a distressing picture.”
Sources have previously told the ECHO that Smith’s body was found in situ inside a wheelie bin at the scene. The prosecution counsel went on to state that a homicide investigation was still ongoing in respect of his death.
Weetman’s defence counsel Peter Wright meanwhile said that Home Office pathologist Dr Matthew Lyle had given a primary cause of death of mixed drug toxicity, telling the court: “Because he has taken such a formidable cocktail of drugs, from the analysis of the blood sample taken post mortem, it was in the opinion of the pathologist that it was the cause of death. My learned friend has touched upon there being water in the lungs. There is no suggestion that there is drowning in the cause of death.
“With respect, my learned friend cannot have it both ways in this case. The position is that they have opened it that there is no suggestion that these defendants are responsible. What they cannot do is, by some cipher, leave the inference to the jury that the death is at the hands of another, or others, as third parties to Mr Weetman and his malign influences.”
Owens, who claimed to have known Smith for four weeks prior to the fire, meanwhile told the court in his evidence from the witness box: “He was on a self destruction mode, to me. He was going round hurting people, robbing people, then he’s gone and killed himself. That’s what he’s done.”
The ECHO previously reported that a 60-year-old man, from Everton, and a 43-year-old man, also from Liverpool, were arrested on suspicion of murder following Smith’s death, although they were later released on bail pending further enquiries by police. A force spokesman said in a statement this afternoon: “The investigation into the unexplained death of Paul Smith is ongoing. A final report will be complete in the coming weeks.”
Paying tribute to him in a statement, Smith’s family said: “Paul was an amazing father to five children who adored him, a loving, supportive partner and a devoted son, always striving to provide for his family. Paul had a huge heart, he was the life and soul of the party, charming and warm to everyone he met. He will be mourned and missed by many, friends and family alike.
“He was a loving brother who devoted his time and love to supporting his elder and younger siblings. He was always the life of the party and kept everyone smiling. He was the glue that bonded his siblings together with his contagious smile and crazy personality. He will be greatly missed and forever remembered for being the outgoing loving sibling and son he was.
“He wasn’t just a loving man, he was an amazing dad. He was the kind of person you felt the moment he walked into a room, full of energy, full of love, always laughing and joking. It’s hard to believe he’s gone and we will miss him so much. He will be missed by his daughter Macie, who said ‘he is my best friend in the whole world, I will always be your little princess and I will love you forever’. Paul was taken from us too soon.”
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