Denise Welch's life 'permanently scarred' as Salford stalker who started fire in her driveway is jailed

A Salford man who started a fire in the driveway of Loose Women star Denise Welch’s home and left her “terrified” has been jailed. Stalker Toraq Wyngard has been ordered to serve seven years and seven months in prison.

Ms Welch, a former Coronation Street actress, gave evidence over video-link from the US as the 54-year-old was sentenced at Chester Crown Court today. She said: “It has changed my life. I have a wonderful life and this man has permanently scarred it.”

The court heard that, just before 11pm on September 19 2020, Wyngard started a fire in a skip outside the home Ms Welch shares with her husband, Lincoln Townley, in Wilmslow, Cheshire. Ms Welch, wearing pink-rimmed glasses, pink lipstick and a yellow top, said she was alerted to the fire by her husband’s “piercing scream” when a member of the public knocked on their door after spotting the flames.

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The court heard that £4,285 of damage was caused by the blaze, which spread to the garage attached to the couple’s house. Gareth Bellis, prosecuting, said CCTV showed a man in a distinctive baseball cap looking around the property before appearing to pour an accelerant into the skip and set it alight.

Wyngard was later arrested nearby wearing the cap, covered in metallic pin badges, and police discovered a 4in (10cm) kitchen knife in his rucksack. The court heard that he claimed to be a press photographer and police found two cameras in his bag.

Officers also found a number of cameras, both normal and covert, and binoculars during a search of his home address. On February 10 2021, while Wyngard was released under investigation, Ms Welch and Mr Townley discovered the words “Witch” and