Hell hath no fury like a builder scorned. Wait, what?
No, really. A builder has taken his frustration out on his employer by destroying a raft of houses just weeks before their owners were due to move in.
The disgruntled tradie claimed that his boss had not paid him and laid waste to £2.5 million's worth of new houses, with onlookers saying that he laughed and took photos as he went on his rampage.
When neighbours feared that he might turn on their properties, he is alleged to have said that he was only taking his revenge on those that owed him cash and destroying the buildings that he himself had worked on.
"It looks like an earthquake or bomb struck," witness, Elaine Francois, 61, told the Sun.
"He was laughing and taking photos of the damage. When police got here he told them he wasn't paid and that's why he did it. He was totally calm."
Another neighbour, William Griffiths, 67, was previously a builder himself and told The Sun: "He said he wasn't dangerous but hadn't been paid."
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"He got out of the digger and I thought, 'Great, he's stopped'. But he got back to carry on. He seemed happy. When police took him away in cuffs he caused no trouble."
A third resident of the street, in Buntingford, Hertfordshire, Patricia King, added: "He's destroyed the lives of people who were going to move in."
Police in Hertfordshire, where the incident took place, arrested 31-year-old Daniel Neagu and charged him with criminal damage.
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"We were meant to be returning on Monday but now don't know what we're doing for work. I'm angry," said Jeffrey Keys, 53, a bricklayer who was due to resume work on the site before Mr Neagu allegedly went on the rampage.
The homes were on sale beginning at half a million pounds, but estimates to repair the damage done stand at almost as much as that. It is thought that the five bungalows might need to be torn down and then restarted again from scratch.
Featured Image Credit: @EHERTSRRLPOLICE