An alleged serial arsonist has been refused bail after she was deemed too high a risk to return to the Wangaratta street where five fires were lit at two homes over the past five months.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Lisa Hay, 33, was brought to tears in the dock at Wangaratta Magistrates Court on Monday when she was told she would not be released from custody.
She was arrested on Friday following an allegedly deliberately-lit fire at the Burke Street home of an 81-year-old woman, who was treated for smoke inhalation after managing to free herself from the burning building.
Detective Senior Constable Justin Schulze told the court police found her fingerprints on the back fence, which she allegedly jumped in the early hours of Friday morning before setting fire to items by the back door.
“We’re concerned by the recklessness of the accused lighting fires at the house while people are at home asleep,” he said.
“The value of the fire damage was about $200,000 and I believe the house will need to be demolished.
“It may have been good luck the smoke detector was working, otherwise this would have been a fatality.”
Hay allegedly lit four smaller fires at the home of her other next-door neighbour – while the woman and her two children were asleep inside the house – using accelerant, tea towels and cardboard on different occasions.
She put out the first fire herself, before alerting the victim, then came over with a bucket of water to help put out the second fire.
The crimes have left other Burke Street residents worried about who would be targeted next.
“Police have installed some CCTV, which we say shows the accused going to light the fires,” Detective Schulze said.
“We have real concerns the accused will continue to offend and the next time she does, we might not be so lucky … The last one had real potential for catastrophic results.”
Hay cried as she pleaded magistrate Ian Watkins to release her on bail so she could see her children, saying she would be willing to report to the police station every day and complete alcohol breath testing.
She denied the charge of criminal damage by fire.
“The reason my fingerprints were on that fence … a couple of days earlier I was loading things into my trailer and my dog was there,” she said. “I was actually checking it was stable.”
Mr Watkins refused to grant bail and ordered Hay be seen by a doctor for her mental health issues.
“Her inability to see her children clearly causes much distress,” he said.
“She is also an unacceptable risk to the public.”
The case was adjourned until next week and Hay flagged she would again apply for bail when she was represented by a lawyer.
