Maher

wanted

"to win greater respect"

An American male nurse has been sentenced to

10 years in prison

by a court in

Monaco

for starting a fire

which killed the billionaire banker,

Safra, Edmond

Ted Maher

was working for

Safra in 1999,

when fire engulfed the banker's luxury apartment in

Monte Carlo.

Safra suffocated in his bathroom

Maher

had confessed to starting the fire,

but his lawyers argued that

he had never meant to kill his employer,

who suffocated to death

along with nurse

Vivian Torrente

after

taking refuge in a bathroom.

Maher

said in his confession that

he had started the blaze at Safra's

heavily fortified penthouse

in a failed attempt to prove himself a hero and

win greater respect from the billionaire.

Prosecutors said

he had raised the alarm and

stabbed himself with a knife

to make it look as if

a gang had attacked

the building.

'Rescue

del

aye

d

'

Describing the deaths as

a "terrible accident",

Maher testified

that he had started

the fire

in a wastepaper basket,

then called emergency services.

The building was heavily secured against intruders

"Stupidity is reprehensible,

but it is not a crime , ( " )

Sandrine Setton,

one of his defence lawyers,

said in her closing arguments.

But

the prosecution said that

Maher, a former Green Beret,

had delayed rescue efforts

by

inventing

a story about intruders.

"He directly caused the deaths of

Mrs Torrente and Mr Safra,"

said head prosecutor

Daniel Serdet.

"He trapped the victims."

The Lebanese-born

Edmond Safra

was founder and principal stock owner of the

Republic National Bank of New York

He was one of the world's richest men

at the time of his death.

Safra had Parkinson's disease and required constant care.

The BBC's

James Coomarasamy

reports that

Safra's widow, Lily,

is one of the richest women

in Britain

and

a

personal friend

of

Prince , Charles

.

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