Latest news with #Howlong
Daily Mail
26-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Corbie Walpole describes for the first time in her own words the moment she doused schoolfriend Jake Loader in 5 litres of petrol and set him alight
A woman who doused her childhood friend in petrol and set him on fire has revealed she could not go into a service station, look at a jerry can or fill her lawn mower with fuel after the senseless attack. Corbie Walpole has also described the moment she ignited Jake Loader as he sat in her backyard soaked in 5 litres of petrol and he 'suddenly went "woosh"'. Walpole was jailed for four and a half years last Thursday after pleading guilty to one count of burn, maim, disfigure or disable a person by use of a corrosive fluid. The attack occurred at Walpole's house in Howlong, near Albury on the NSW-Victoria border, when she was hosting a group of friends including Loader on January 7 last year. Walpole said she snapped when Loader, who she had known since high school and now lives on his parents' Queensland cattle station, told her she should be in the kitchen baking scones rather than out drinking with boys. Loader was left permanently disfigured, having suffered third-degree burns to more than half his body and spending 74 days in the burns unit of Melbourne 's Alfred Hospital. In a 10-page affidavit, 25-year-old Walpole prepared in April ahead of her sentencing in the NSW District Court, she set out to explain what she had done to Loader in her own words. Walpole disclosed she had considered taking her own life after setting 22-year-old Loader on fire and felt 'physically ill' when she saw his shocking injuries in photographs. She also conceded her drug and alcohol use had spiralled out of control as she dealt with the breakdown of a long-term relationship. Walpole met Riley Stone in 2019 and they bought a house in November 2022 but from early 2023 things between them became strained. 'We were regularly arguing, usually about Riley being lazy or immature and me having to organise and arrange everything in our lives and the relationship,' she said. 'It got the to the point a few months before the offence where I tried to avoid Riley as much as possible. I didn't want to go home and would try and stay out and socialise to avoid being home and being around him.' Throughout 2023, Walpole was consuming 15 to 20 standard drinks, half a gram of cocaine and one or two ecstasy pills, each weekend. She sometimes took speed and ketamine as well. 'Every now and then I would black out after drinking and taking drugs,' she said in her affidavit. 'Otherwise I thought I was in control. Looking back, I was clearly not in control. 'Alcohol and drugs were my escape and I was needing more and more of them to distract myself from feeling down and low. 'I remember feeling anxious a fair bit before the offence. However I did not really think about my mental health or have any insight or understanding of it. 'I always thought that whatever emotional issues I felt were ones I should just be able to deal with by myself.' On the night she set Loader on fire Walpole had taken about a third of a gram of cocaine and downed cider, homemade punch, whisky, rum and vodka - up to 35 standard drinks. Walpole, Loader and their friends had gone to the local golf club, a house party and a 21st birthday celebration during the evening. By the time the remaining revellers made their way back to Walpole's home at Howlong at was 4am. 'Jake had been antagonising me during the night,' Walpole said. 'He was telling me I needed to get back to the kitchen and that I was a girl. I gave it to him back, as I thought he was being a misogynist. 'He was really pushing my buttons.' About 5am, Walpole and Loader were sitting around an outdoor table drinking cans of Hard Solo with two male friends. 'Jake kept telling me I should be in the kitchen and making scones for them,' Walpole said. 'He said I shouldn't be out drinking with boys. He told me I was stupid. 'At one point I went to the garage and got the jerry can that was in there. I brought it out and poured petrol onto Jake's head. 'I then got a lighter and held it out and told Jake that, "I'll do it, I'll do it". Jake then looked at me and smiled and said, "Go on, do it".' Walpole recalled what she did next: 'I then lit the lighter.' 'Jake then suddenly went "woosh" and lit up in flames,' she said. 'He was on fire all over. He started running around the yard screaming and trying to get his shirt off. 'I remember him going to the pool. I could not believe what I had done. I freaked out. I started crying and shaking and saying, "What the f*** have I done? What the f*** have I done?" 'He just wouldn't stop. He was telling me to do it.' Walpole remembered a female friend hugging her. She ran out the front door and down to the Murray River. After that, much of what happened was a blur. 'I was in shock after the offence,' she said. 'I remember waking up at some point after being asleep and thinking it was a nightmare. 'I could not believe what I had done or that it was real. I was so worried about Jake and what had happened to him.' Loader, who spent eight days in an induced coma, had suffered third-degree burns to 55 per cent of his body and second-degree burns to a further 6 per cent. 'I could not leave the house after what I did to Jake,' Walpole said. 'I kept thinking to myself, "What the f*** have I done?" 'I thought for a few days that I had to kill myself because of what I had done... I stopped thinking about suicide after a few days. I realised I was thinking about myself and not about Jake. 'I lost 6kg in the first week after I committed the offence. I could not eat. I would see Jake burning every time I closed my eyes. I also saw him in my dreams. 'I would have flashbacks of Jake burning when I saw parts of the house.' The electrician returned to work three days a week in late February and after a month was back fulltime. 'After the offence for about one month I was not able to go to a service station,' she said in her affidavit. 'It was only when I returned to work and had to fill up the work van that I started attending service stations again. 'Since the offence I cannot look at a jerry can and I cannot fill up the lawn mower. I have to get dad to do this.' Before her sentencing Walpole re-read a statement of facts about her attack on Loader and looked at photographs of the injuries she inflicted upon his arms, legs, chest and face. 'Looking at the photos of Jake makes me feel physically ill that I caused those shocking injuries to him,' she said. 'I was devastated to see those photos and felt so appalled and disgusted at myself for what I did. I am deeply ashamed of what I did to Jake.' Of her alcohol and drug abuse, Walpole vowed in her affidavit: 'I have not touched them since and intend never to do so again.' Walpole said she deserved 'significant punishment' for her 'dangerous, reckless and stupid' conduct and knew that was exactly what she faced. 'I cannot imagine the pain and suffering Jake has experienced,' she said. 'I cannot imagine what his family, his girlfriend Annabelle (who was my good friend before I committed the offence) and everyone else who cares about him have been trough because of my conduct. 'I am responsible for that suffering. I do not make excuses for what I did because there aren't any. 'I understand I can never atone for what I did to Jake. My only hope is that Jake is OK.' Walpole will be eligible for parole in November 2029.
News.com.au
23-05-2025
- News.com.au
The petrol fire attack highlights a major double standard
OPINION A woman was sentenced on Thursday to seven-and-a-half years prison for setting her friend alight after a night of partying in Howlong, a town in southern New South Wales. The decision handed down yesterday triggered a strong reaction in me, but not in the way you might expect. In the early hours of January 2024, Corbie Jean Walpole, 25, poured petrol and set her friend, Jake Loader, on fire, after he made a sexist remark about how Walpole should go to the kitchen and make scones instead of drinking with the boys, the court was told. In the moments beforehand, Mr Loader is said to have goaded her, telling her to, 'Go on, do it,' which she did. His friends heard his screams and tried to extinguish the flames using a dog bed, before throwing him into a pool, according to the ABC. Despite their efforts, he suffered third-degree burns to over half his body. He has since been diagnosed with PTSD and is unable to expose his skin to sunlight. After reporting on Walpole's sentencing yesterday, I noticed a recurring theme in the public's reaction online. They were using this opportunity – the rare occurrence of a female inflicting violence against a man – to bring awareness to another issue … the way that violence against women is often minimised and justified by society. And to be honest, I completely get where the frustration comes from. How many times have you read a news article or a comment section that tries to excuse male violence? If you flip the script and use these same excuses for a case of woman-inflicted violence, such as this, it can really highlight just how absurd they sound. For example, could you imagine anyone suggesting this man was 'asking for it' by wearing something flammable, or asking why he didn't say 'no' more forcefully? You'd never see a headline that questioned whether or not he consented to this, or whether he changed his mind halfway through. Because of course, these are all utterly ridiculous questions to ask in the face of such a horrifying crime. People also love to use the 'bright future' defence, where offenders will appeal for leniency based on their youth or their athletic or academic achievements. This happened during the 2016 Brock Turner trial in the US, where former Stanford University swimmer Turner was convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman, Chanel Miller, outside of a fraternity party. His legal team, and supporters online, tried to gain sympathy for him by drawing on his career as a promising athlete. Could you imagine someone saying, 'Walpole's future is ruined because of one man', or 'She's too young to understand what she did'? Don't forget about good character references, which are often used to tell a court that a convicted rapist is in fact, a decent human being. Do you remember the 2024 trial where a group of three men in Newcastle were found guilty of gang-raping teenagers during a bucks party? The victims provided harrowing evidence of what was perpetrated against them in their victim impact statements. Yet the convicted rapists were allowed to provide the court with 20 good character references that spoke to the men's caring nature and their respect for women. What about when high profile referees submitted good character references for Luke Lazarus, when he was found guilty, and later acquitted of the 2013 rape of 18-year-old Saxon Mullins behind a Kings Cross nightclub? It would feel highly irrelevant, given Walpole's crimes, to hear comments like, 'I know her personally and she'd never do something like that' or, 'She's such a nice girl, she wouldn't hurt a fly'. The point is, if men feel uncomfortable with women jokingly asking things like, 'Was he asking for it?' – it's because they know deep down how irrelevant they are. It's time that a mirror be held up and the double standard exposed. These lines of questioning need to stop, against any victim, regardless of gender.
News.com.au
22-05-2025
- News.com.au
Woman doused friend in petrol, set him alight after sexist remark
A woman who doused a 'lifelong friend' in petrol and set him alight after being angered by his misogynistic comments has just been sentenced to seven-and-a-half-years in prison. Corbie Jean Walpole, 25, pleaded guilty in December to one charge of burning or maiming by using corrosive fluid and had hoped to receive a non-custodial sentence. However, she was told she would spend a minimum four-and-a-half-years behind bars after a judge denied her plea for mercy, according to ABC. Judge Jennifer English said she rejected the claim that Walpole was 'provoked' when she attacked her friend, Jake Loader, on a night out in January last year. 'It is never easy to send a young person, particularly a young woman, to jail,' Judge English told the NSW District Court in Albury, shortly before 10am on Thursday. 'But where appropriate, it is something that must be done.' She described the act as violence which was fuelled by alcohol and drugs. 'This is a tragic case in so many ways for the victim and his family, and the offender and her family: two young lives destroyed,' she said. As the decision was handed down, supporters of Mr Loader cheered, while Walpole, who works as an electrician, mouthed to her distressed family, 'It'll be okay, it'll be okay'. On January 7, 2024, Walpole hosted her friend of at least nine years, Mr Loader, who was 23 at the time, at her home in Howlong, in southern New South Wales. They had been out partying with friends before they returned to her backyard at around 5am to continue drinking. The majority of the group was heavily intoxicated, and Walpole had taken cocaine. She said that Mr Loader was being antagonistic towards her throughout the night and even tried to wrestle her at one point. On another occasion, he tried to wake up her boyfriend, who was asleep. 'I was feeling overwhelmed by (Mr Loader's) presence and I didn't know what to do,' she said in court, according to ABC. The court heard her anger peaked when Mr Loader suggested that she stay in the kitchen making scones, where she belonged, instead of drinking with the boys. She then left the table and headed to her garage, where she picked up a five-litre container of petrol. She returned to the group and poured it on Mr Loader before waving her lighter at him. He then teased her and goaded her to, 'Go on, do it,' before Walpole set him alight, the court heard. 'Completely lost it' Walpole abusing drugs and alcohol from late 2022, the court heard. According to her lawyer, Peter Neil SC, Mr Loader consistently antagonised Walpole throughout the evening, which ultimately 'pushed her over the edge'. 'She simply had completely lost it,' he said, adding that the incident was made worse by her drug and alcohol abuse. Crown prosecutor Max Pincott pointed out that Walpole had plenty of time to calm down and could have walked away from the situation, but didn't. He also said that Walpole's actions were so far beyond a reasonable response that there was no argument that she was provoked to act in that way. 'Horrible, remorseful, guilty' While crying on the witness stand, Walpole said she was shocked by her own actions. 'To this day I feel horrible, remorseful, guilty for what I have done to Jake, not only Jake but his family, his loved ones, his mutual friends … anyone who has been impacted in this entire case,' she said. 'I find it very hard to believe the injuries that were caused (were) from my doing. 'I would do anything to go back in time. No one deserves what happened to Jake and I can't imagine the pain — both physically and emotionally — that I've caused him and his family.' Burns to 55 per cent of his body Mr Loader didn't attend court but sent a victim impact statement that was read aloud that explained how his life had been turned upside down by the violent crime. He suffered burns covering 55 per cent of his body, spent eight days in an induced coma, and was hospitalised for 74 days in the burns unit at Melbourne's Prince Alfred Hospital, undergoing 10 surgeries and skin grafts. Mr Loader is now unable to expose his skin to sunlight and has difficulty regulating his temperature as his sweat glands were burnt off. He also lost his income, which added financial pressure on his family, who travelled to support him and pay for medical costs. A GoFundMe was set up to raise funds for his recovery and has since collected $47,456. 'This attack did not only hurt me, it hurt everyone who cared about me,' he said in his statement.
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Woman tradie who torched her mate in a petrol-fuelled inferno is SAVAGED by no-nonsense judge - as she's thrown in jail and tells sobbing family: 'It'll be OK
A woman who set her childhood friend on fire after he made what she deemed misogynistic comments has been jailed for a minimum four and half years. Corbie Walpole had hoped to receive a non-custodial sentence but was put away for a maximum seven years and six months after a judge rejected her plea for mercy. Judge Jennifer English rejected any suggestion Walpole had been provoked when she attacked Jake Loader in an act of 'destructive and horrifically painful violence'. 'It is never easy to send a young person, particularly a young woman, to jail,' Judge English said on Thursday. 'But where appropriate it is something that must be done.' Walpole arrived at the NSW District Court, sitting in Albury on the NSW-Victoria border, with her parents and sister shortly before 10am. About an hour later when the electrician learnt her fate the 25-year-old turned to her distressed family and mouthed, 'It'll be OK, it'll be OK'. Walpole had faced a maximum 25 years for setting Mr Loader ablaze as he sat on a chair in her backyard at Howlong, about 30km west of Albury, early last year. Ms Walpole torched her childhood friend Jake Loader after a night drinking on January 6, 2024 The pair met when Mr Loader went to boarding school at St Paul's College at Walla Walla, about 40km north of Albury, and had been friends for at least nine years. Mr Loader, who lives in the Queensland Outback where he musters cattle, was in Howlong to join old friends including Walpole for a night on the drink which included celebrating a 21st birthday. Walpole claimed Mr Loader had been baiting her before she poured 5 litres of petrol over his head and used a cigarette lighter to turn him into a human torch. 'He was antagonising me,' she previously told the court. 'He told me to go to the kitchen where I belong because I'm a girl. I gave it back to him and called him a misogynist.' Judge English rejected any suggestion Walpole, who claimed she had felt 'challenged and disrespected in her own home' had been goaded into doing what she did. 'I find that the assault upon the victim was unprovoked,' the judge said. Walpole wiped tears from her eyes as Judge English recounted the night that changed Mr Loader's life forever. Mr Loader was 22 and Walpole was 23 when they began drinking with mates about 8pm on January 6, 2024 at Howlong Golf Resort. Two hours later they went to a 21st birthday party at Howlong, then kicked on to a house party at North Albury, and returned to the birthday gathering about 2am. The group's final stop was Walpole's home, where they settled into the backyard about 4am. Some of the revellers, including Walpole, had taken cocaine earlier in the evening and most had retired to the Russell Street house, where Walpole's partner was sleeping, within an hour. Judge English said Walpole had begun drinking at 5pm, downing bottles of cider, schooners of Canadian Club and Bacardi and cola, and cans of Hard Solo. An expert estimated Walpole had consumed 23 to 35 standard drinks over 12 hours and would have had a blood alcohol level between 0.22 and 0.38. In all that time she had eaten only two slices of pizza. Walpole claimed Mr Loader had been antagonising her throughout the evening, trying to wrestle her and wake her sleeping boyfriend. 'He was really pushing my buttons,' she said. 'I was feeling overwhelmed by [Mr Loader's] presence and I didn't know what to do.' Walpole snapped when Mr Loader said she should be in the kitchen baking scones, rather than out drinking with boys. Walpole had a can of Hard Solo in her hand when she erupted. Walpole got up from an outdoor table and went to her garage where she collected a 5 litre jerry can of fuel, went back to the table, poured the petrol over the seated Mr Loader and waved a cigarette lighter around. 'I'll do it,' Walpole said. 'I'll do it.' Mr Loader replied: 'Go on, do it.' Walpole carried out the threat and Mr Loader was immediately engulfed in flames. Mr Loader, who ran around the yard screaming, tried to pull off his shirt but the melted fabric stuck to his skin. Two male friends extinguished the fire by plunging Mr Loader into a small pool. Walpole held her head in her hands and said: 'What the f*** have I done? He was telling me to do it.' Mr Loader was taken by ambulance to Albury Hospital then flown to The Alfred in Melbourne where he spent eight days in a coma, 74 days in the burns unit, and underwent 10 operations. He had suffered third degree burns to 55 per cent of his body and less severe injuries to an additional six per cent. Those injuries were spread across his back, chest, arms, legs and face. Judge English described Walpole's deeds as 'deliberate acts committed in the presence of others'. 'For those present it must have been truly horrific to be witness to,' she said. 'It was an act of immediate, destructive and horrifically painful violence.' Mr Loader can no longer expose his skin to the sun and his body struggles to regulate its temperature because his sweat glands were burnt off. 'It will affect the rest of my life,' Mr Loader said in a statement read by Crown prosecutor Max Pincott earlier this month. Walpole pleaded guilty in December to one count of burn, maim, disfigure or disable a person by use of a corrosive fluid and has been on bail for the past 16 months. At a pre-sentence hearing, Walpole wept on in the witness box as she unsuccessfully attempted to explain what she had done. 'I wasn't thinking,' she repeatedly said when asked about her actions. 'I didn't want to injure Jake.' Judge English did not accept Walpole's contention she was unaware putting a cigarette lighter to a man soaked in petrol would set him ablaze. 'I find that position difficult to believe,' she said. Judge English also rejected Walpole's claim she had set out to scare Mr Loader, rather than harm him. 'She threatened to set fire to the victim and she did exactly that,' she said. Further, Walpole should have known the consequences of lighting the petrol would likely be catastrophic - 'which is exactly what occurred'. The court heard Walpole, who pleaded guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily after a scuffle with a pub bouncer in 2021, had been abusing drugs and alcohol from late 2022. She had been in a failing relationship which left her feeling trapped and depressed early last year but admitted that was no excuse for setting fire to Mr Loader. 'Jake didn't deserve what happened,' she said. 'I find it very hard to believe the injuries that were caused was from my doing. I would do anything to go back in time. 'No one deserves what happened to Jake and I can't imagine the pain - both physically and emotionally - that I've caused him and his family.' In the months leading up to the attack, Walpole had been taking 1 gram of cocaine and two to three ecstasy tablets as well as drinking heavily every weekend. She was also occasionally using ketamine and meth. Judge English found Walpole had engaged in 'nothing short of drug and alcohol-fuelled violence' rather than becoming aggressive due to her depression. She described the attack on Mr Loader as 'not uncharacteristic' considering she had previously admitted assaulting the bouncer in 2021 when she was intoxicated. Judge English mentioned several times that Walpole and Mr Loader had been friends. 'This is a tragic case in so many ways for the victim and his family and for the offender and her family,' she said. Walpole has exhibited symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder since the attack and constantly replays the events of the fateful morning in her head. She experiences nightmares and intrusive thoughts and clearly remembers the 'bewildered' look on Mr Loaders' face when he stepped out of the pool covered in burns. Walpole, who Judge English accepted was extremely remorseful, did not leave her house for a month after the attack and the smell of petrol now triggers a traumatic reaction. She has given up alcohol and drugs and is undergoing counselling. Judge English received character references from Walpole's mother, father, sister, employer and netball coach at the Howlong Spiders. All spoke of her in glowing terms. Despite Walpole having excellent prospects of rehabilitation and being highly unlikely to reoffend, Judge English said no sentence other than full-time custody would be appropriate for her offending. Walpole's sister burst into tears when Judge English said Walpole would first be eligible for parole on November 11, 2029. Walpole did not express emotion and had to wait five minutes before two Corrective Services officers arrived to take her to the cells below the court house. She waved goodbye to her family in the public gallery as Judge English said, 'Take the prisoner downstairs please'.
ABC News
22-05-2025
- ABC News
Woman sentenced for setting friend on fire during night of partying
A southern NSW woman has been sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in jail for setting her friend on fire during a night of heavy partying. Howlong woman, Corbie Jean Walpole, poured petrol on Jake Loader and then set him alight while they were drinking in her backyard in January last year. Mr Loader, who was 23 at the time of the attack, sustained third-degree burns to 55 per cent of his body, and was in an induced coma for eight days. The Albury District Court earlier heard Walpole, who worked as an electrician, carried out the attack after he told her to get back into the kitchen and not to drink with boys. Walpole, 24, earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of burning or maiming by using corrosive fluid. Supporters of Jake Loader cheered in court as the sentence was handed down. Judge Jennifer English described the act as violence fuelled by drugs and heavy drinking. Walpole and Mr Loader, who had been friends for nine years, had been drinking for about 12 hours and into the morning of January 7 last year. The court heard Walpole had consumed potentially between 23 to 35 standard drinks, as well as cocaine, and they returned to her backyard to continue drinking. The court heard Walpole and Mr Loader had been antagonising each other throughout the night, and she committed the crime after he made "misogynist comments". The court heard that Mr Loader's friends who were at the Howlong home heard him screaming and tried to extinguish the flames, that had begun melting his shirt, with a dog bed. He was then thrown into a pool. Walpole, who has since been diagnosed with PTSD, stood by watching , saying "what the f*** have I done", and "he told me to do it". "I find that the assault upon the victim was unprovoked and particularly violent," Judge English said. Judge English also said that she found it difficult to accept that Walpole's depression at the time resulted in her decision-making. The court heard that Walpole was remorseful, showed good rehabilitation prospects, and had given up drugs and alcohol. Walpole remained composed during sentencing as her family sobbed, and will be eligible for parole in November, 2029.
