A beggar accused of murdering three squatters in a Melbourne factory fire was caught in a love triangle and made threats before the blaze, a court has been told.
Darren Patrick Clover, 53, was jealous of his ex-lover Tanya Burmeister and her relationship with David Griffiths, at the time he allegedly burned the old Footscray factory, Melbourne Magistrates Court heard on Thursday.
Clover is charged with murdering Mr Griffiths, Ms Burmeister and her 15-year-old daughter Zoe Burmeister by setting fire to the ropeworks factory on March 1, 2017.
A witness told his pre-trial hearing on Thursday that in the week before the blaze, the accused man allegedly told Ms Burmeister: "I'll burn you to your grave".
Naomi Lane alleged her friend Ms Burmeister had been in an off-again, on-again violent relationship with Clover and kept going back to him because he had threatened her and she feared for her life.
Before the fatal fire, she said Ms Burmeister and Mr Griffiths began seeing each other romantically.
Ms Lane said both Ms Burmeister and Mr Griffiths feared Clover, and twice he walked past and used his finger to signal cutting his throat.
The pair were even thinking about moving their begging spot in the CBD to get away from Clover, who was also a beggar, the witness said in her police statement.
Another witness, Ronald Thornton, said Clover asked him about a fortnight before the fire if he had seen Mr Griffiths or Ms Burmeister.
"He was upset. He was thinking he was going to harm them or something," Mr Thornton told the court.
"He said he'd punch them up, get even with them and burn them.
"I never took him to be serious, but that's what he said."
Mr Thornton told police Clover was very jealous and possessive of Ms Burmeister.
"He talked about her coming back to him."
At the time they were killed, Ms Burmeister and Mr Griffiths were living together at the squat, he said.
Bich Thai, whose family home was near the factory, said she once overheard a fight between a woman and man, who was saying, "you don't love me anymore".
Clover has been charged with three counts each of murder and arson causing death, plus one count of damaging property by arson.
The committal resumes on Friday.
