Woman challenges three-year jail term after involvement in$700,000 contract fires

A woman was promised – but not paid – money to set two revenge fires and cause huge damage. The single mother has now fought to reduce her time behind bars.

The revenge fires at Snug and Cambridge caused almost $700,000 in damage. Picture: Patrick Gee

A woman who was promised – but not paid – money to set two revenge fires, causing almost $700,000 in damage, has failed in a challenge against her three-year prison term.

Kirsten Jade Donoghue, 29, agreed in December 2021 to help a man, who had been offered money by a woman to set fire to a truck and damage a storage container.

The request had come after the deterioration of relationships between the controllers of a company, with one man removed as a company director.

About 2.30am on the morning in question, Donoghue drove the man to the home of one of the married couples behind the company.

At the request of the woman, the pair used petrol to set fire to a Toyota HiLux – destroying the $80,000 and $10,000 of tools and contents within it.

The following morning at the same time, the pair drove to the company’s premises with another can of petrol.

The man smashed a window of a storage container and the pair entered, stealing a diesel heater, a welder and a radio.

The man then smashed the window of an Isuzu truck, throwing petrol into it with a lighter.

As the couple ran back to their car and drove away, the fire spread and damaged the container to the tune of $100,000, plus $500,000 worth of damage to its contents.

Shortly afterwards, the man sent the woman who had requested the damage two messages, saying “done” and “trucks f … ed and I grabbed what eva I could but it was still going on when I drove back past it last night lol”.

Police found the welder and radio in the man’s car, along with a map of the company’s premises and evidence he’d received $500 from the woman on the morning of the first fire.

When interviewed by police, Donoghue admitted her involvement.

She was given a three-year jail sentence, with a non-parole period of 18 months, after pleading guilty to burglary, stealing and two counts of unlawfully setting fire to property.

While being sentenced, the judge noted she did not know the people behind the company and that she’d been promised $1000 for the commission of the crimes, but had received nothing.

Donoghue appealed on the basis her sentence was manifestly excessive.

On appeal, barrister Kim Baumeler said Donoghue planned to use the money to move out of Tasmania with her daughter, and also noted no lives had been placed at risk.

She also argued Donoghue had pleaded guilty at an early stage, and that a custodial sentence would impact on her child.

But the Court of Criminal Appeal was not convinced, saying the crimes had been carried out under contract.

The trio of judges, in dismissing the appeal, said the sentencing judge had given the appropriate weight to the considerations at hand.

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