Woman jailed over two fire deaths

Linda Bokas was found guilty of culpable homicide

A woman has been jailed for eight years for starting a fire in a block of flats in Aberdeen which killed her partner and another woman.

A trial earlier heard Linda Bokas set fire to clothing in a cupboard at a flat in Hutcheon Court after she spied her partner having sex with the woman.

Raymond Munro, 48 and Lorraine Symon, 36, died in the fire in July 2006.

Bokas, 50, was originally charged with murder, but a jury found her guilty of two culpable homicides.

Sentencing the mother-of-five at the High Court in Edinburgh, judge Lord Brodie said Bokas had not intended to kill Munro and Symon but they had died as a result of her "unlawful conduct".

Drinking heavily

Bokas was led to the cells, still claiming she was innocent.

During the trial she had tried to convince the court that the fire on the ninth floor of the tower block had been started by Mr Munro, her long-term partner.

She said he had discovered Ms Symon had changed her mind about leaving to start a new life with him.

The trial heard that after the blaze, four lighters were found on his body.

The jury found Bokas had set fire to clothing, the fire took hold and Ms Symon died from her injuries.

Mr Munro died after entering the flat.

The court also heard that on the night of the fire, Bokas had talked about seeing Mr Munro and Ms Symon having sex.

The trial was told that all three had been drinking heavily during the hours before the fire.