A man who deliberately lit two fires in the Royal National Park during a sweltering summer day has told a Wollongong court his motivation was to photograph "faces" he saw in the smoke.
Bizarre Motivation Behind Dangerous Acts
Chad Littmann, 48, from Kirrawee, pleaded guilty in Wollongong Local Court on January 13, 2026 to two counts of setting fire on Crown Land and one count of possessing a drug pipe. The court heard Littmann would often camp in national parks on weekends, lighting small fires to photograph the smoke.
His solicitor, Ashley Bird, explained her client's unusual reasoning to the court. "He takes photographs because the smoke sometimes displays images or faces on a camera; he likes to look at the smoke," Ms Bird said. She added that Littmann, who occasionally smoked MDMA while camping, lit the fires to "clear his head" and did not intend to cause damage.
Fires Lit During 30-Degree Heat
Court documents reveal the first incident occurred around 8am on December 21 on McKell Avenue in Waterfall. A passing motorcyclist witnessed Littmann lighting the fire and promptly alerted emergency services, leading to the man's arrest.
While in custody at Sutherland Police Station, investigators seized Littmann's phone. They discovered 36 photographs of a separate, earlier fire he had lit inside the national park at approximately 4.10am that same day. Rural Fire Service officers later located this second fire site, which had burnt an area measuring just 15cm by 15cm before extinguishing itself.
When questioned by police, Littmann claimed he used a lighter and a leaf to start the blazes. He stated he believed his actions were permitted because Indigenous communities are allowed to conduct cultural burning, a defence the court did not accept.
Magistrate's Scathing Assessment and Sentence
Police prosecutor Sergeant Scott Wiblin argued the acts were deliberate and posed a severe risk. "These are two deliberate acts in the middle of summer. There is a significant need to recognise the potential harm matters like these can have on a community," he told the court.
Magistrate Geraldine Beattie was unequivocal in her condemnation, agreeing with the prosecution about the extreme danger. She noted the fires were lit in a tinder-dry National Park during 30-degree heat, where they "could have been catastrophic."
Rejecting the defence's characterisation of the acts as non-sinister, Magistrate Beattie stated, "I'm of the view these offences are so serious the only appropriate sentence is one of imprisonment."
Littmann, who has been in remand for over a month, will remain behind bars until the matter returns to Wollongong Local Court for sentencing on February 24.
