A man who allegedly drenched his apartment in gasoline after being evicted by Bermuda Housing Corporation (BHC), admitted owing thousands of dollars in back rent yesterday.

Caesar Grahame, 30, appeared in Magistrates? Court to answer to the debts, and told Magistrate Edward King that he did not lie and did owe the money.

He owes BHC a total of $6,504 in rent after falling behind in his payments and refusing to move out when he was first ordered to in spring this year. The court heard how Grahame had first been asked to leave when BHC won the judgment in April, when he owed $6,427 rent.

At that time, he agreed to pay the debt at a rate of $600 a month, which he adhered to between May and September. However, he did not move out of the North Shore Road property and did not keep up with the rent payments, leading BHC to take further action to evict him. reported in September how Grahame forced a tense stand-off after refusing to leave the property. He is alleged to have threatened to burn it down.

Senior Police officers were brought in to negotiate with the father and the stand-off was brought to an end after about two hours.

At the time, Grahame said he was upset because he had been attempting to pay the debts and felt BHC should have allowed him to stay. He was finally persuaded to leave the property when Police said he would be given an opportunity to put his side across at a court hearing.

Lawyer for the BHC, Kim Wilson told the hearing that Grahame still owed $3,214 of the original debt, and a further $3,290, which had accumulated between May and September, which the housing corporation was attempting to get back yesterday.

The hearing took some time to get underway after Grahame?s lawyer, Larry Scott, applied to have the case adjourned, claiming the writ had been filed under the wrong legislation. He alleged BHC did not own the property, and that it belonged to a private individual.

However, that was disputed by Ms Wilson, who said she had evidence to prove BHC owned the apartment, and Mr. King insisted the trial went ahead. After a 30-minute heated row between Mr. Scott and Mr. King, in which the lawyer attempted to remind the Magistrate of his duty and then accused him of taking a ?very peculiar position?, the hearing finally got underway.

Mr. King said: ?Mr. Scott, you are either on this case or you are not on this case, but I?m going to try this case this morning if it?s the last case I ever try in Bermuda.

?This is a clear cut case. If he did not pay that rent, he owes it ? pure and simple.?

After Mr. King refused to adjourn the case, Mr. Scott was forced to withdraw as he had another matter to attend to in Supreme Court, and Grahame had to defend himself. Asked whether he owed back rent, Grahame said: ?I?m not disputing that the money is owed. I lived there. I don?t lie.?

He said he had been unable to pay any arrears from September because he was remanded in jail for a month, but was now hopeful of getting his job back at The Centre youth club.

Grahame, who is temporarily staying in Vesey Street, Devonshire, was ordered to pay the arrears in regular payments, to be arranged with the BHC. He has also previously been charged with unlawfully damaging the apartment and unlawfully entering the property on September 16 ? a day after being evicted.

The case is due to be heard in Supreme Court.