An Indian man who said he was set alight by assailants near his Melbourne home last month accidentally burned himself while torching his car for an insurance claim, police allege.
Jaspreet Singh, 29, of Grice Crescent, Essendon, in the city’s north, faced an out-of-sessions hearing early this morning before a bail justice at St Kilda Road police complex charged with making a false report to police and criminal damage with a view to gaining a financial advantage.
The case gained international headlines among a series of attacks by white Australians on Indian nationals in Melbourne.
Singh, who is in Australia on his wife’s student visa, told police he was doused with petrol and set alight as he parked his car near his home early on Saturday, January 8.
Singh was taken to The Alfred hospital with burns to 15 per cent of his body, affecting his face, arms and hands.
But Detective Senior Constable Danielle O’Keefe of the arson and explosives squad told the hearing Singh suffered the burns while trying to torch his 2003 Ford Futura.
Detective O’Keefe said arson chemists and hospital staff had concluded the damage to the car, Singh’s clothes and his injuries were not consistent with his story.
“Police inquiries have led us to believe that Mr Singh is in some financial difficulty and that he intended to sell his car but instead stood to gain $11,000 from an insurance claim out of this particular incident,” she told the hearing.
Police had obtained security footage depicting Singh buying a 15-litre opaque plastic container and 15.96 litres of petrol on the day before the attack.
The container and other evidence was found at his unit when he was arrested yesterday, Detective O’Keefe said.
She said Singh had been very co-operative but denied all allegations.
His wife had been questioned about her knowledge of the incident, she said.
Burns were still obvious on Singh’s face and neck, and he wore pressure bandages on his arms.
Through an interpreter, Singh told the hearing he and his wife planned a holiday to India, leaving on February 20 and returning in late April to visit his child and extended family.
Detective O’Keefe said police did not oppose bail but noted that Mr Singh was a potential flight risk.
The bail justice, who declined to be named, granted him bail with strict conditions banning him from contacting witnesses and attending points of international departure.
He must report to police three times a week and surrender his passport.
He will appear before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on March 15.
At the time, police Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Neil Smyth described the attack as “a bit strange” and said there was no evidence the attack was racially motivated.
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