The Supreme Court in Nowra has been told that a man accused of murder yelled "burn c*** burn" and laughed as he lit a house fire that killed his neighbour on the NSW South Coast.
Bomaderry man Harley Thompson, 27, is on trial after pleading not guilty on the grounds of mental illness to a charge of murder.
Mr Thompson is accused of pouring petrol through the windows of 49-year-old Cameron Johnston's home, four doors up from his own, and lighting a fire in the early hours of August 1, 2020.
Witnesses told the trial they heard Mr Thompson yellowing "burn c*** burn" as he lit the fire.
Emergency services were able to retrieve Mr Johnston from the burning home but they were unable to revive him.
Ice a factor
The court heard Mr Thompson lied to police in his initial interview.
He admitted to having an altercation with his neighbour, but said he did not light the fire which killed him.
Expert witnesses, however, told the court Mr Thompson admitted during psychiatric assessments to lighting the blaze.
He also made admissions about lighting the fire to his mother in a letter and to his former partner, the court heard.
The expert psychiatric witnesses said in their evidence earlier this week they believed Mr Thompson was suffering from a psychotic episode on the night of the incident, exacerbated by the drug ice, which he was using at the time.
Symptoms may have been 'feigned'
Prosecutor Kate Ratcliffe told Justice Michael Walton during closing submissions of the judge-only trial today that Mr Thompson may have feigned symptoms of a mental illness when he spoke with doctors to try to lessen his culpability and get bail.
She said the crown believed he knew what he was doing, despite the expert witnesses' diagnosis of a psychotic episode.
"An honest account of symptoms is what psychiatrists base their diagnosis off," Ms Ratcliffe said.
"But he gave a blatantly false account of events in his police interview and minimised his drug and alcohol use on the day."
Mr Thompson's defence lawyers argued the evidence did not suggest he was faking a mental illness and the diagnosis of such illness should be in the hands of the experts.
A verdict is expected to be delivered by Justice Walton next week.
