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Pallade Veneta - 'Someone else done it': Man charged in deadly NZ hostel fire

'Someone else done it': Man charged in deadly NZ hostel fire

BOULEVARD 19.05.2023
'Someone else done it': Man charged in deadly NZ hostel fire
'Someone else done it': Man charged in deadly NZ hostel fire / Photo: Marty MELVILLE - AFP

A 48-year-old man accused of igniting a New Zealand hostel fire that killed at least five people claimed that someone else started the blaze during a court appearance Friday.

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During the hearing, he shouted: "I need bail, I need a good lawyer. Someone else done it."

Prosecutors charged him with two counts of arson: setting the four-storey Loafers Lodge on fire in the early hours of Tuesday, and burning a couch earlier in the building.

Wearing a dark hooded top, he gestured frantically with his hands and paced from side to side in the dock during his first hearing at Wellington District Court.

The man, whose name was suppressed by the court, was remanded in custody.

He did not enter a formal plea.

Police have said they are not seeking anyone else in relation to the blaze.

On Friday, police revised the confirmed death toll to five, after firefighters previously said six bodies had been located.

Police inspector and acting district commander Dion Bennett told reporters that "less than 10" people were still unaccounted for, but declined to give an exact figure.

F.Amato--PV

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