A remorseless killer who doused an innocent man in petrol and set him alight will likely spend the rest of his years behind bars for the brutal attack.
Victorian Supreme Court Justice Andrew Tinney on Thursday spared Stuart Lee, 65, a life sentence for the "shocking and heartless" murder of Colin Bainbridge.
But he was still jailed for 35 years and will be close to 90 before he is eligible for parole.
"Mr Bainbridge was an entirely innocent and blameless man who provided no provocation to you for your murderous attack on him," Justice Tinney said in sentencing.
"The pain and anguish you caused ... is incalculable."
Mr Bainbridge had been felling trees in a friend's backyard in March 2023 when, without any instigation, Lee in the neighbouring property yelled at him to "f*** off".
Mr Bainbridge said the same thing in response and Lee rushed off to call the police.
After five calls went unanswered, Lee finally told an officer he would go and murder his neighbours if they did not come.
The 65-year-old then went into his shed, poured petrol from a jerry can into a blue bucket and grabbed a lighter from inside the house.
Lee went into the backyard, climbed a fence and poured the petrol over Mr Bainbridge before setting him on fire.
Mr Bainbridge's son Joshua, who was working nearby, rushed over and helped put out the flames with a hose.
He was airlifted to The Alfred hospital with burns to 81 per cent of his body and died later that evening.
In sentencing Lee on Thursday, Justice Tinney accepted the 65-year-old had a personality disorder which made him inexplicably suspicious of his neighbours.
That disorder explained Lee's thinking but the judge rejected defence claims Lee was genuinely frightened of Mr Bainbridge.
"I do not accept that you were ever in fear," Justice Tinney said.
"Your indignant anger overcame your clear understanding of the wrongfulness of your actions and you committed murder."
Lee claimed to a psychiatrist that Mr Bainbridge had threatened him with a chainsaw after he was caught trespassing on Lee's property.
But Justice Tinney determined that story was entirely fabricated to either make Lee's conduct sound more understandable or to make the killer feel better.
It was more likely that Lee was frustrated with the noise the Bainbridges were making felling trees and he reacted in anger, the judge said.
"You had ample opportunity to reflect upon your intended course," Justice Tinney said.
"You chose not to do so."
Justice Tinney found Lee's moral culpability was high despite his personality disorder because he was not psychotic and he knew the consequences of his action.
Deterrence was key in sentencing because Lee had previously been charged with threatening to kill a neighbour by setting him on fire, Justice Tinney said.
Lee's prospects of rehabilitation were also very poor given his lack of remorse and inability to feel empathy as a result of his personality disorder, the judge said.
If Lee had not pleaded guilty before trial, Justice Tinney said he would have sentenced the 65-year-old to life behind bars.
