A British man has been convicted of manslaughter over the death of his Australian farmstay host, after a jury rejected a murder charge linked to a fire that destroyed her home.
Timothy Loosemore, 62, was found guilty over the death of Maree Vermont, 60, whose remains were discovered after the blaze at her property in Goldie, near Kilmore in central Victoria, in August 2023.
The verdict followed a 14-day trial at the Supreme Court of Victoria. Loosemore was acquitted of murder but convicted of the alternative charge of manslaughter and remains in custody.
Ms Vermont had initially accommodated Loosemore through Airbnb after he arrived in Australia. He later stayed intermittently at her rural home, carrying out odd jobs in exchange for accommodation and meals.
The prosecution said the pair had briefly been intimate, but that Ms Vermont rejected Loosemore’s attempts to pursue a relationship. In a message sent to her son shortly before her death, she reportedly said she had made clear that she did not want an intimate relationship and that he was taking the rejection badly.
Crown prosecutor Mark Gibson KC alleged that Loosemore attacked Ms Vermont on the evening of August 5, 2023, after she told him the relationship would not continue. He argued that the fire was then started to conceal the circumstances of her death.
The prosecution pointed to scratches on Loosemore’s face and neck, blood on his clothing and the absence of soot in Ms Vermont’s airways. It also told jurors that three plastic fuel containers were missing from the property, although no accelerant was detected.
Ms Vermont’s cause of death could not be established by a pathologist because of the extent of the damage caused by the fire.
Loosemore’s barrister, Christopher Farrington, denied that his client had assaulted or killed Ms Vermont or started the blaze. He argued that the forensic evidence was inconclusive and that the prosecution had failed to prove its murder case beyond reasonable doubt.
The defence suggested that Loosemore’s facial injuries could have been caused by barbed wire, a rose bush or burns. Farrington also told the court that his client had been heavily intoxicated, with a blood alcohol reading of 0.18, and had consistently said he left the house to collect firewood before returning to find it on fire.
Neighbours told the trial that Loosemore appeared covered in soot as he raised the alarm after the property caught fire. The defence argued that his actions were consistent with someone who did not know what had happened inside the house.
Loosemore will return to the Supreme Court of Victoria for a pre-sentence hearing on September 3.
