Arson trial: Woman's fate up in air after Rotorua District Court trial on hold

Rotorua Courthouse. Photo / File

The trial of a woman accused of burning down a house she was in the process of buying is up in the air until there is any lifting of lockdown levels.

The trial was a day short of the jury being released to consider its verdict when New Zealand went into lockdown level 4 last week.

The woman on trial, who can't be named for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty to the arson of a Rotorua house on May 8 last year.

She is accused of burning it down just as she was about to take possession of the property. The Crown alleges that as a result the property owner was able to claim insurance and she was able to buy a section (minus the burnt house) for just $70,000 and therefore gained a windfall valued about $85,000.

It is the defence's case that the woman couldn't be behind such an "elaborate" scheme and would not have burnt the house down as she was desperate for the property deal to go through to allow her son to live at the house.

Both the defence and Crown have closed their cases and Judge Greg Hollister-Jones was due to give his summing up just before the country went into lockdown.

The trial has now been adjourned pending the announcement of future alert levels.

All trials in courts throughout New Zealand are on hold during lockdown and only overnight arrests and cases involving accuseds in custody can go ahead via audio visual links.