Angelo Loras, a 35-year-old man who caused A$54,000 in damages after setting a synagogue in Melbourne on fire in July, was released from jail after spending 134 days in solitary confinement.
Loras, who was homeless at the time of the arson, was suffering from severe hallucinations of zombies during the arson, Magistrate Malcolm Thomas said, according to Australian media reports. He had a long history of schizophrenia prior to the incident.
Loras pleaded guilty to recklessly placing people at risk of death and arson.
Loras told police he didn’t know the building was the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation synagogue when he set it alight on July 4, believing instead that it was a residential building.
Up to 20 congregants were inside the building for Shabbat at the time of the fire, according to court documents.
Mental health issues, not antisemitism, led to synagogue arson
Denying that the arson had the hallmarks of a hate crime, Thomas acknowledged the fire had a “terrible impact” on the Jewish community - particularly in light of the arson on Adass Synagogue in Melbourne last December.
"This is an entirely different case to how it was considered, what it represented. He's a man who's clearly been very unwell and unwell for a long time," he said.
Describing Loras’s stint in solitary confinement as “nothing short of disgraceful,” Thomas said, "He's not been put in there because of any conduct on his part. It seems he's been put in there because of the concern as to what might have motivated this offending."
"It is in the community's long-term interests that there be a smooth transition for Mr Loras back into the community and integration with the non-custodial mental health system," he said.