Gosport teenagers admit arson at bus station and are punished with programme to address behaviour
Three teenagers from Gosport have pleaded guilty to criminal damage and arson following a fire at Gosport bus station in 2024.
Police were called at 4.48am on Tuesday 26 November last year by the fire service reporting a small fire at the bus station.
Three 15-year-old boys, all from Gosport, have now appeared at Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court where they pleaded guilty to various offences.
These included arson, two counts of criminal damage to property under £5,000 at Premier Gosport Marina and Boatyard and The Boathouse Café between Sunday 24 November and Thursday 27 November 2025 and one count of burglary at the marina site during the same dates.
One defendant also pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon on Wednesday 4 December 2024 in Portsmouth.
All three were ordered to pay £500 compensation as well as undertaking a programme of interventions and activities to address their offending behaviour after being issued with a 10-month referral order.
A spokesperson for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service said at the time: “Firefighters were called to a small fire at a bus terminal on Mumby Road in Gosport during the early hours of the morning at approximately 4:30 a.m.
“The fire, which involved rubbish, was extinguished by the crews. The incident is believed to have been started deliberately and has been handed over to the police for further investigation. Fire crews left the scene shortly before 5 a.m.”