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Aussie fire suspect confesses
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Posted on Jan 09 2001
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — A man accused of starting a hotel fire that killed 15 young backpackers allegedly admitted to police who arrested him that he lit the blaze, lawyers said Friday.
In legal arguments at Brisbane Magistrates Court, defense lawyers for Robert Paul Long said police reported that Long made the confession after he was shot while resisting arrest. He believed he was dying when he spoke, the lawyers said.
Long’s lawyers mentioned the confession while arguing that members of a special police team that arrested him should be identified in court. Such teams are usually allowed to testify anonymously.
Also Friday, a British tourist, 27-year-old Lisa Duffy of Kent, England, testified that Long asked that a fire escape be left open so he could enter the building on the night of the fire.
Long, 37, is charged with arson and with the murders of Australian twins Kelly and Stacey Slarke. He could face further charges in the other deaths — six visitors from Britain, four from Australia, two from the Netherlands and one each from Ireland, South Korea and Japan.
Duffy said Long told her he had lung cancer during a conversation on June 23, the day of the fatal fire. He also said he felt suicidal, Duffy testified.
“At the beginning of the week he said that he wanted to blow his head off,” Duffy told the court.
Duffy said Long also told her of his dislike for one of the managers of the Palace Hostel and for an Asian backpacker staying there. News reports have said that Long, a fruit picker, had been banned from the hostel.
