Quoc Bao Duong on court for burning his home to the ground

A Bundaberg court has heard of the moment a father-of-two, high on meth, set his family home on fire hours after his first attempt was thwarted by nearby builders.

A Bundaberg court has heard of the moment a father-of-two, high on meth, set his family home on fire, just hours after a similar attempt was thwarted by concerned nearby builders.

Quoc Bao Duong pleaded guilty to one count of arson, and one count of attempted arson domestic violence offences in the Bundaberg District Court on Tuesday, December 5, 2023.

The court heard Duong had turned to drugs after his relationship of 11 years with his wife ended.

Crown Prosecutor Erin Hanlon told the court the farm worker had appeared in the Bundaberg Magistrates Court less than a month prior to the arson for assault occasioning bodily harm while armed and under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

She told the court Duong had got into a verbal altercation and struck his victim with a metal pole and later threatened to kill police who had come to arrest him in his home.

The court heard Duong was given an immediate parole release date for those charges on October 19, 2022 but declined referrals for drug assistance programs.

It was only weeks later, around midday on November 2, 2022 Duong lit a mattress in his Walkervale family home, which had been vacated by his wife and two children following their separation, the court heard.

Images from the scene the day after the arson reveal the mattress burned in the initial arson attempt.

Concerned builders working in the area noticed the smoke, and dragged the mattress outside before dousing the flames with water from a garden hose.

Duong returned hours later at roughly 6pm, armed with more flammable liquid to finish the job, the court was told.

The court heard Duong doused the home in what was believed to be gasoline before setting the house alight and fleeing the scene.

When Queensland Fire and Emergency Services arrived the house was fully alight, with two likely areas of origin identified by investigators.

Duong was located by police later that night and taken into custody where he remained until his sentencing in district court, serving out the parole period of his previous offences.

Images from the scene the day after the arson reveal the smoke, flame damage on the outside of the house.

Judge William Everson commented on Duong’s criminal history and his unwillingness to address his drug issue.

“If he’s stupid enough to not recognise that he has a drug problem which has caused him to end up spending a substantial period in jail and he wants to go back to jail, he just has to do that,” he said.

“It’s hardly surprising that he tried to burn the house down, not once but twice, and was seriously on methamphetamines, that he’s ended up back in jail.”

Duong was given a head sentence of three years imprisonment for the arson offence, and 18 months jail for the attempted arson offence to be served concurrently with an immediate eligibility for parole.

Convictions were recorded.