By Shayna Jacobs
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN SUPREME COURT — A man who set fire to the stairwell of a Midtown building after getting kicked out of a party was convicted of arson and other charges Monday, prosecutors said.
Daniel Phillips, 31, was charged with igniting the first floor stairwell of 410-412 West 48th St. on Jan 25. 2009 after the host of a party in that building asked him to leave.
Phillips was apparently angry that he was forced to abandon his belongings at the apartment, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said his goal was to ruin the party from the outside because he was angry he'd been forcibly removed form the host's home.
But in the process of getting revenge, he caused $320,000 in damages to the building and caused a panic among the residents, many of whom used the fire escape to get out.
Manhattan DA Cy Vance said Phillips was "jeopardizing civilian lives" and the "safety of firefighter" who responded to the blaze.
"Daniel Phillips’ actions could have had deadly consequences for anyone in or near that building," Vance said.
Phillips faces up to 25 years in prison when he's sentenced on Nov. 23.
