Overview
- A fire on Saturday destroyed the Clontarf home of Michelle Liddle and Ben Beaumont and damaged two neighbouring houses, forcing evacuations and leaving some residents with no belongings.
- Queensland Police allege 36-year-old Corey Wardle used an accelerant to start the blaze, fled the scene and was located shortly after by a police dog squad.
- Wardle has been charged with three counts of domestic-violence attempted murder and two counts of arson and is being held in a mental-health ward ahead of a Brisbane Magistrates Court appearance via videolink on Thursday.
- No occupants were physically injured and the family recovered the urn containing their son Angus Beaumont’s ashes, but the couple must pause their gardening business and community fundraisers have raised tens of thousands of dollars for the displaced households.
- The case deepens long-running trauma for the Beaumont/Liddle family following Angus’s 2020 murder and will now move through criminal procedures that include mental-health detention and likely fitness assessments for court.