The woman being tried by a popular jury for her alleged involvement in the fire that took the life of an elderly man in Ibiza has denied any connection to the events. The accused, for whom the Prosecutor’s Office is requesting life imprisonment with the possibility of review, insisted on Monday that she “never” went to the victim’s home early that morning to set it on fire.
During her statement, the defendant answered only her lawyer’s questions and forcefully rejected the accusations of murder made by both the Prosecutor’s Office and the private prosecution. She explained that in the early hours of 3 August 2023, she left her home at around 1:05 a.m. to go for a walk — something she said she often did because she felt safer at night after allegedly suffering an attempted hit-and-run by her ex-partner.
The woman insisted that she did not approach the house where the two elderly residents were sleeping, one of them a 78-year-old man with reduced mobility who died in the fire. His wife, aged over 90 and suffering from Alzheimer’s, and her caregiver managed to escape.
In her testimony, the defendant also denied having conflicts with the deceased’s daughters or having asked the family for money for the couple’s care — help that she said she was providing “as a favour” to her partner, the couple’s son. She further denied having claimed a leadership role within the family after her partner’s suicide attempt and said she was unaware of his mental health issues. She stressed that she had never acted out of economic interest.
Regarding the images recorded by cameras in the area, in which she is allegedly seen walking towards the victim’s home, the defendant stated that she recognises herself in some sequences but not in others. She also denied having changed her clothes on the morning of the fire.
The detainee described her arrest as “traumatic” and claimed that an officer asked her to confess — something she refused to do because, she said, “she had nothing to confess”. She also recalled that she has been diagnosed with a schizophrenic disorder.
The defendant faces one count of murder and one count of arson, as prosecutors believe she intentionally set the fire that destroyed the family home. The trial continues with the presentation of evidence and witness statements before the popular jury.