A NEWPORT man was today jailed after he showered a taxi parked on a petrol station forecourt with two-and-a-half litres of fuel and set light to it.

The vehicle was engulfed in flames after Oliver Evans, 26, who was walking past, picked up a nozzle from a nearby pump and poured petrol on it before lighting it, Cardiff Crown Court heard.

The driver, Asim Mushtaq, and his passenger, Sian Bingham, managed to escape before Mr Mushtaq bravely pushed the taxi on to the road Seconds later, staff at the Shell station in Malpas Road put out the flames.

Evans, a catering worker of Gordon Street, Newport, was sentenced to an indeterminate prison term for public protection after he admitted setting fire to the Vauxhall Omega with intent to endanger life.

Evans claimed he could not remember the offence, it was said. His counsel, Hilary Roberts, told the court Evans "assumed what happened was some sort of prank".

Judge Roderick Denyer directed he serve a minimum of three years before he can be considered for parole.

"I watched a video showing you pouring petrol over the taxi and setting light to it. It was a terrifying spectacle," he told Evans.

He said he considered there was a real risk of Evans presenting a danger to the public in the future.

Miss Bingham has been left so scarred by the incident she now spends almost all her time at home, the court heard.

Prosecutor Roger Griffiths said next day Miss Bingham realised the enormity of the incident and that she could have been killed.

He said she had lost her appetite and some weight, had difficulty sleeping and suffered nightmares.

"She's still too afraid to drive her car and fears going to a petrol station. She spends most of her time at home," he said.

Mr Griffiths said that at about 3am on September 7 last year, Miss Bingham and her boyfriend James Baulch had got into the taxi in Upper Dock Street, Newport, to visit friends in Malpas.

On the way Mr Baulch decided he wanted cigarettes and the taxi stopped at the station. Mr Mushtaq and Miss Bingham stayed.

Mr Griffiths said it was fortunate the damage was limited and said there had been an even more serious risk because the taxi ran on gas more volatile than petrol.

The court heard Evans was arrested next day and said: "Was anyone hurt?" He claimed he had no recollection of the incident.

Evans had a conviction for causing actual bodily harm and received a three-year sentence for wounding with intent which involved hitting a man across the head with a clawhammer, the court heard.

Referring to the petrol incident, Evans' counsel Hilary Roberts said: "He does not drink very much but 12 hours before had taken valium. He can only assume what happened was some sort of prank.

"He did not target anyone out of hostility and the court must be concerned about the risk of him harming anyone in future.

"Though he is articulate he has struggled to provide an explanation. He knows he is going to prison for some time and is going to use that positively."