Anthony John Kruger: Geraldton man jailed for seven years for setting Department of Communities on fire

A Geraldton man has been handed a seven-year prison sentence after he doused the Geraldton Department of Communities office in petrol while people were inside and set it alight last year. Anthony John Kruger, 51, pleaded guilty to two charges in Geraldton District Court on Monday afternoon, including one count of criminal damage by fire and one charge of with intent to harm, unlawfully did an act as a result of which the life, health or safety of a person was or was likely to be endangered. The State prosecutor told the court that on Thursday, August 3, last year, Kruger entered the Department of Communities office in the West End of Marine Terrace carrying a small dog. “He had a grievance, they hadn’t completed a maintenance request for new fencing,” she said. Kruger left his dog in the office, and walked out before staff at the department called the ranger to collect the chihuahua. When Kruger returned later in the day to be told his pet had been taken away, he made a call to triple-0. While on the phone, Kruger said “I will burn the department of housing to the ground, if you’re in Geraldton this is your last warning because I will do it”. About 50 minutes later he returned with a black jerry can, and “made several sloshes” onto the desk and surrounds of the reception area in the office. Staff pleaded with Kruger to stop, with one saying “please don’t do it”. The prosecutor said the staff member believed he was going to douse her in petrol. Kruger then used a lighter to ignite the petrol, and left the premises — driving away in his white Hyundai Excel. The blaze caused $1.6 million damage to the historic building, forcing the department to relocate to another building for a four-year lease. Kruger was located in his car a couple hours after the incident occurred, in Moonyoonooka, via a police helicopter. The court was told when police confronted Kruger, his clothes were covered in petrol and his eyebrows were “burnt off his face”. There were 30 staff in the building at the time, which were all evacuated — three have submitted victim impact statements to the court. One staff member said the ordeal had left her with diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, was unable to sleep, and medicated for anxiety. Another said she had been left fearing for her life, and was experiencing outbursts of crying throughout the day, with trouble sleeping through the night. Kruger’s defence lawyer George Giudice said his client was suffering from extreme mental health problems and did not intend to harm anyone during the incident. “This is not a case of acting out of sheer anger because he wasn’t getting his way . . . the court is dealing with someone who was under extreme stress,” he said. A psychological report revealed it was “highly probable” Kruger’s depressive disorder “impacted his ability to make sound decisions”. Kruger had been living in his house for the last 20 years with his now-late parents, but had recently been told to vacate the property, which was contributing to his stress. District Court Judge Michael Bowden said it was lucky the incident did not carry “more tragic consequences” and addressed Kruger’s “failure to develop coping mechanisms”. Judge Bowden issued Kruger with two seven-year prison sentence for each charge, to be served concurrently. The seven-year term of imprisonment was backdated to when Kruger was first placed into custody, on August 3, 2023. He will be eligible for parole in August 2028 — once he has served five of the seven years.