An arsonist who set fire to a Spanish cafe-bar after being told he could not have mayonnaise on his sandwich has been jailed for three and a half years. Jose Rafael walked to a nearby petrol station to buy a 1.5-litre bottle of petrol after being refused the condiment for a second time at Las Postas Cafe-Bar in Los Palacios y Villafranca, just south of Seville.
CCTV shows fire erupting
CCTV footage showed him strolling up to the bar counter where he appeared to put a lighter to an object in his hand. Moments later, huge flames can be seen erupting as customers, including young children and elderly people, scrambled to safety.
The arsonist, who caused thousands of pounds of damage, also set fire to his left hand by mistake and can be seen attempting to use his right hand to stub out the flames before he turned around and exited the building. Rafael was arrested near the scene of the incident and remanded in custody.
Plea bargain and compensation
Prosecutors had sought an 11-year prison sentence for Rafael, but he received a much shorter term after reaching a plea bargain through his lawyer. Before a hearing at a court in Seville, he paid more than €9,200 (£7,715) in compensation for the damage.
As well as his prison sentence, Rafael was given a 10-year restraining order preventing him from going within 500 metres of Las Postas Cafe-Bar. He has been behind bars since his arrest on August 20, 2025, and the time he has already served will be taken into account when his release date is determined.
Owner describes incident as 'surreal'
Jose Antonio Caballero, the cafe-bar's owner, previously described the incident as 'something surreal'. He said: 'First one waiter and then another the second time this gentleman asked for mayonnaise gave him the same answer which was that the bar didn't have a kitchen and the sandwiches came ready-prepared and we didn't have sauces.'
'At that moment he walked to the garage opposite, returned to the bar with a bottle in his hand which we discovered afterwards had petrol inside, and asked the first waiter: 'Are you sure there's no mayonnaise?' without giving him time to reply.'
Caballero also said that despite one quick-thinking member of staff using a fire extinguisher to put out the flames, the repairs to the damage is expected to cost between £6,000 and £7,000. However, he added: 'The important thing is that nobody was injured,' he said. 'There were young children and elderly people around. Imagine if someone had been hurt.'
