Wayle Mana: Alleged Burgertory arsonist denied bail due to public risk
A man accused of setting fire to a pro-Palestinian activist’s burger shop will remain in custody after a magistrate said his alleged crime spree was “extraordinary”.
The man accused of setting fire to a pro-Palestinian activist’s burger shop will remain in custody after police argued he was an “unacceptable risk” to the public.
Wayle Mana, 25, appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Monday seeking to be released to attend an intensive residential rehabilitation program in regional Victoria.
The court was told he would have been subjected to strict conditions including an ankle monitor while he received treatment aimed at curbing drug use.
But bail was refused by Magistrate David Starvaggi who said, in his opinion, no conditions could ameliorate the risk Mr Manna posed.
“The evidence I heard impressed me as reliable and credible and indicative of extraordinary or incredibly serious crime,” he said.
The court was told Mr Mana was arrested in January and charged with offences including arson after the Burgertory restaurant in Caulfield was gutted by fire in the early hours of November 10 last year.
He is also accused of assault and car theft in Doncaster the same day.
Prosecutors told the court police had identified three of four people they allege were involved in the incident.
Days before his arrest, police allege Mr Mana was also involved in the firebombing of a tobacco store in Ballarat, where he suffered serious burns to his feet.
After the fire, Burgertory owner and prominent activist Hash Tayeh said he believed the fire was a hate crime, however police later said there was no evidence of racial or political motivation.
The incident prompted a clash between pro-Palestine protesters and pro-Israel supporters at a park near the shop.
Mr Mana was remanded into custody and will return to court next week.