PENTICTON — An ex-boyfriend of a woman charged with arson told the court the pair had a tumultuous relationship and the suspect had allegedly threatened to burn his belongings.
On the night of March 27, 2014, three homes were destroyed and four people became displaced.
READ MORE: FIRE DESTROYS THREE PRINCETON HOMES
One of the homes was a house Robert Cormack rented with the accused, Ashley Patricia Gallagher. The ferocious fire also burned two neighbouring homes to the ground.
Cormack told the court that on the night of the blaze, he and Gallagher had been arguing. He went to his parent’s home in Tulameen but Gallagher drove there to confront him.
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“I did not feel comfortable going back to town to discuss things with her so she came to my parents’ pounding on the door to talk to me. But I didn’t feel comfortable so I stayed inside,” says Cormack.
Cormack says Gallagher had threatened to torch his belongings.
“She threatened to burn my snowmobile because she knew it would hit home to me. I really enjoyed that sport and it was something that she could take away from me.”
Cormack said in his police statement that he was on the phone with Gallagher on the night of the blaze when he heard something suspicious. He said it was the sound of liquid being poured and a lighter being flicked.
During cross examination, the defense argued that this was information RCMP were trying to feed to the witness. But Cormack says this was not the case.
“How do you feed a guy information when he was the one who heard it over the phone?”
Gallagher is facing six arson-related charges and has pleaded not guilty.
There was no DNA evidence found at the crime scene and no witnesses who saw whoever sparked the blaze.
The lawyers are expected to deliver their final submission by the end of this week.
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