San Remo retiree Greg Neal sparks grass fires trying to clean Central Coast reserve during COVID-19
“It was not his finest hour” for an elderly man who sparked two grass fires trying to clean up tissues and other rubbish left in a reserve outside his home at the height of COVID-19, a court has heard.
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An elderly man was left red-faced and in denial when he tried to burn tissues and other rubbish in a reserve outside his home only for the wind to spread it to nearby scrub, a court has heard.
Gregory Jerome Neal, of San Remo, faced Wyong Local Court on Monday where he pleaded guilty to one charge of setting fire to property, while another charge of intentionally causing a fire and being reckless to its spread was withdrawn and dismissed.
Mr Neal’s solicitor Ryan Finch told the court the 74-year-old took great pride in the waterfront reserve at the rear of his house, which backed onto a cycleway and Budgewoi Lake.
He said at the height of COVID-19 lockdowns in April people would come and sit at Mr Neal’s “part of the reserve” because he mowed it regularly and it was well maintained.
Mr Finch said Mr Neal did not want to touch tissues and other rubbish left behind so he lit it on fire only for the wind to blow it into nearby scrub which caught alight.
An agreed set of police facts states the fires were started about 6.30pm on Friday, April 24, and witnessed by three people including two young women who confronted him and called Triple 0.
NSW Fire & Rescue attended and the two fires were quickly extinguished.
One witness who was sitting in his food delivery van across the road told police he “saw the fire gain in size and saw the accused standing there illuminated by the fire”.
“Police arrived a short time later and spoke to NSW Fire & Rescue as well as the witnesses, police were pointed in the direction of where the accused was still standing and watching about 50m away,” the facts read.
“Police were shown the two ignition points and NSW Fire & Rescue confirmed they were deliberately lit. The burnt grass and shrubs were photographed and a pink/red lighter was located nearby.”
Police questioned Mr Neal at the scene on Body Worn Video where he denied lighting the fires.
“The accused said, `I went down there when it started, all these girls came out and started accusing me of starting the fire’, when being told a few people had seen him lighting the fires he said `no way’,” the facts state.
He was asked if he was a smoker but he said “no I don’t smoke” and also asked about a lighter being found there.
“The accused stated he had been burning some incense in his home before putting it in his pocket, the lighter was still in his pocket when he states he went to look at the fire,” the facts state.
“He stated the colour of the lighter he had was red, when asked to check his pant pockets for the lighter he couldn’t find it anymore.”
Mr Finch said Mr Neal “panicked” when confronted by the police.
“He should have said straight away what he did and why,” Mr Finch told the court.
“Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Fortunately it didn’t get out of control.”
Mr Finch said his client had started seeing a psychologist as the whole incident had “taken a big toll on him”.
He told the court the retired public servant of more than 40 years had also purchased a few native plants from Bunnings to replace those burnt in the fire and made a donation to the Rural Fire Service.
Mr Finch said at the time a neighbour “turned up with a wheelie bin full of water” and Mr Neal also tried to extinguish the fires before the firefighters arrived.
“It was not his finest hour,” Mr Finch said.
“He did make efforts to get it out. He was on his hands and knees trying to get it out.”
Magistrate Elizabeth Ellis said she heard every day “the effects of what’s been thrown at us every day this year” from bushfires, then floods and the ongoing impact of COVID-19.
However she said his record “deserved the right” to remain unblemished and put him on a good behaviour bond for 12 months without conviction.