The accused is charged with murdering five people by setting the Wellington boarding house alight in May 2023. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
A Crown witness says the man accused of lighting the fatal Loafers Lodge blaze has threatened to kill him during court proceedings on Wednesday.
The 50-year-old was charged with murdering five people by setting the Wellington boarding house alight in May 2023.
His lawyers say he was insane at the time, but the Crown says he knew it was morally wrong.
After an adjournment on Wednesday, Justice Peter Churchman acknowledged the defendant was no longer in the dock.
He told the jury the man would return to court on Thursday, and they should not read anything into what happened.
"These things occasionally happen," Churchman said.
The accused's lawyer described there having been an "outburst" in the courtroom on Wednesday.
Dr Jeremy Skipworth. Photo: Pool
Crown lawyer Stephanie Bishop asked witness, psychiatrist Dr Jeremy Skipworth about the man's "aggressive outbursts" he had seen in the courtroom, and during his interviews prior to the trial.
The outburst in court was consistent with him being "very angry", said Skipworth.
"He threatened to kill me."
The man's lawyer Steve Gill referred to the outburst when his cross-examination of Skipworth resumed after the adjournment.
Skipworth disagrees with the defence's argument that the man was insane when he lit the fire.
Gill said the defendant was much more unwell that Skipworth understood him to be.
"It's the unpredictable nature of his illness, I'm putting to you, that none of the psychiatrists have got to grips with, I suggest.
"And I'm referring to the outburst we had today, totally out of the blue, wasn't it?"
Justice Peter Churchman. (File photo) Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii
Skipworth said he'd experienced a similar outburst at the end of his second interview with the defendant.
"It's not atypical for him when he is in a reasonably settled state, he does have these outbursts."
The outbursts were not indicative of serious states of unwellness, Skipworth said.
Gill asked if the intensity of the man's outburst surprised him.
Skipworth replied again it was similar to an outburst he had seen before, when he believed the defendant was not seriously unwell - rather, at "baseline".
The trial continues, with the Crown calling psychiatrists rebutting the defence of insanity.
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