A BAKER armed with two lighters who drowned his colleague in white spirit during a 'fit of rage' has been jailed for 30 months.

Graham Marsh told police he wanted to 'murder' victim Noel Taylor after allegedly suffering 18 months of abuse at the hands of the 'bully'.

The 46-year-old's victim was left fearing he would be set alight and burned to death during the 'utterly terrifying' episode on July 7.

Jailing Marsh on Friday after he admitted making a threat to kill and common assault, Judge Peter Ross said he accepted the defendant had been troubled by Mr Taylor's 'teasing'.

He added: "There was undoubtedly an atmosphere around you at work. While some may regard it as harmless workplace banter, it must be remembered it can have a considerable effect on others."

Prosecutor Jonathan Stone told Oxford Crown Court Mr Taylor spotted Marsh perching on a wall, grasping what he thought was a bottle of water, after arriving for work at Banbury's Fine Lady Bakery.

Marsh, of Bretch Hill, Banbury, said 'I'm going to sort this out now' moments before drenching his victim from his neck to his knees with white spirit from the bottle, while clutching a lighter.

Mr Taylor tried to snatch the bottle from Marsh's hands after fearing he would be set on fire, refraining himself from 'beating' the defendant, the court was told.

The defendant later told a firefighter he wanted to set himself alight and had covered himself in white spirit.

Marsh was walked to the police station by the firefighter after removing two lighters from his backpack and pocket, along with barbecue lighter fluid.

The defendant also revealed to the firefighter a colleague was constantly point-scoring against him, the court was told.

He admitted to officers he wanted to cause serious harm to his victim, adding he felt things had been 'getting too much' after telling police he had depression.

In his police interview, Marsh revealed there had been ongoing issues with Mr Taylor since his mother died, claiming his victim made comments which had 'built up and up'.

The court was told there was a confrontation between the pair, who were 'nose to nose', the day before Marsh doused Mr Taylor with the alcohol.

Defence barrister Alistair Grainger said Marsh, who had no previous convictions and must pay a victim surcharge, had been struggling to cope but acted 'wholly' out of character.

It was a time of 'extreme' personal stress for the defendant, who had worked at the bakery for about 15 years, Mr Grainger added.

He told the court Marsh, was in the process of selling his home, which had been purchased by his late mother, after being unable to keep up with payments.

Marsh was also charged with attempting to cause grievous bodily harm but the Crown Prosecution Service offered no evidence on this charge.