Iraqi asylum seeker sets two taxpayer-funded migrant hotels on fire

An Iraqi sheep farmer risked the lives of fellow asylum seekers by setting fire to two Home Office-funded hotels where he was being housed, including the controversial Bell Hotel in Epping, a court has heard.Rawand Abdulrahman, 37, admitted to having started two fires, firstly at the Phoenix Hotel, five miles from Epping in North Weald, and then one at The Bell eight days later.However, he denies that in doing so, he deliberately or recklessly endangered the lives of other occupants and the emergency services.Prosecuting, George Penny, told Chelmsford Crown Court: 'At the time of the fires, the Phoenix and Bell hotels were used exclusively to house refugees and asylum seekers.After entering the UK, he claimed to be a sheep farmer from Iraq , but the authorities have not been able to verify this, the court heard.