Layla Malietoa sentenced after lighting her Grindr date’s house on fire

A “jealous” woman lit her sleeping Grindr date’s Woolloomooloo veranda on fire three days after Christmas in a bid to get his attention when he refused to speak to her.

Malietoa was sentenced at Downing Centre Court House.

A “jealous” woman lit her sleeping Grindr date’s veranda on fire in a bid to get his attention when he refused to speak with her outside his home.

Layla Malietoa, of Austral, faced Downing Local Court on Wednesday after previously pleading guilty to damaging property by fire and using a carriage service to harass.

The 30-year-old was sentenced to an intensive correction order for one year and was ordered to complete 100 hours of community service work.

Court documents state Malietoa was in a casual relationship with the victim after meeting him on dating platform Grindr.

Malietoa travelled to Woolloomooloo and knocked on the victim’s door about 6am on December 28 last year.

Malietoa fronted court after lighting her casual Grindr date’s veranda on fire.

Police facts state the victim did not let her in and said he was busy. Shortly after she lit items on the veranda on fire, including a swag and a mattress, and went back to her car.

Malietoa was spotted glancing over her shoulder at the flames as she walked away, documents continue.

The victim used a garden hose to extinguish the fire. Picture: File

The offender drove away only to return a few minutes later to move the burning swag onto the road, where she added wood to fuel the fire. Malietoa took off again leaving the veranda alight.

The victim woke up to a fire alarm and the smell of smoke. He saw “a ball of flame” on his veranda and switched into “panic mode” but managed to extinguish the flames with a garden hose.

Police facts state the victim called emergency services who noticed the gas metre outside the home had been melted off during the blaze.

The victim discovered 41 missed calls from Malietoa and the incident was captured on CCTV leading to the offender’s arrest.

Police stated the fire could have killed the victim and his neighbours, as he resided in a commission building.

Malietoa’s lawyer Kevin Gibbons said his client was a transgender woman and would have to attend a male prison if she was sentenced to jail where she would be vulnerable.

Mr Gibbons said the journey through her transition “has had its moments” however she was maturer and accepted by her family.

He said Malietoa understood the “gravity” of the offending, expressed remorse and had sought help for her anger management and poor mental health.

Magistrate Megan Greenwood said Malietoa was honest about not being able to manage her anger.

She said on the day of the offence, Malietoa had been “frustrated” and “jealous” and lit the items on fire to get the victim’s attention so he would leave the house and talk to her.

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