A lodger who stabbed his elderly landlord 179 times during a frenzied knife attack after developing the delusional belief that he was being poisoned has been detained indefinitely in hospital. Moses Fernandes, 23, killed 71-year-old Terry McFadyen at the Norwich home they shared on November 3 last year. Norwich Crown Court heard Fernandes was experiencing what experts described as his first psychotic episode and was suffering from a schizophrenia-like illness at the time. Fernandes admitted manslaughter by diminished responsibility and was today made subject to an indefinite hospital order. Hours before the killing, Fernandes contacted a woman and claimed McFadyen had poisoned him and that he believed he was going to die. He later called 999 seeking urgent medical assistance, telling the operator that his body felt “really tight” and asking for an ambulance as quickly as possible. Paramedics arrived at the Norwich property at around 4.35am and found Fernandes outside. The lights from the ambulance woke McFadyen and his partner, Jenny Holmwood. Concerned about his lodger, McFadyen went downstairs and helped persuade Fernandes to return inside the property. Holmwood remained upstairs and later described Fernandes as appearing “deranged” and “like a madman”. Moments later, the situation turned deadly. Prosecutor William Carter told the court that Fernandes suddenly took a serrated kitchen knife from a drawer before anyone could intervene. He then launched a sustained attack on McFadyen as the paramedics watched. The 71-year-old was repeatedly stabbed and slashed across his upper body, face and neck. Both paramedics activated their emergency panic alarms and called for urgent police assistance, warning that Fernandes was armed with a knife. Police were alerted at 4.44am and officers arrived within minutes. McFadyen, however, had suffered catastrophic injuries. The court heard he sustained at least 179 stab wounds and died at the scene from massive and unsurvivable blood loss. When Fernandes was arrested, he was heard muttering: “He poisoned me, that’s why.” Investigators found no evidence that McFadyen had poisoned or otherwise harmed Fernandes. The court instead heard that the two men had previously been on good terms before Fernandes developed the delusional belief that his landlord was trying to poison him. Fernandes’ plea to manslaughter by diminished responsibility was accepted in light of his mental condition at the time of the killing. He has now been made subject to an indefinite hospital order, meaning there is no fixed date for his release. Detective Chief Inspector Kevin Barber described McFadyen’s death as a deeply tragic loss and said he had been a devoted father, much-loved partner, family member and friend. He said the killing had also caused lasting trauma to those who witnessed the attack and profound grief for McFadyen’s family. DCI Barber said: “No outcome of the court process can change the devastating loss that Terry’s family and friends have suffered. “Throughout this investigation, they have shown tremendous dignity, patience and strength in the face of unimaginable grief, and our thoughts remain firmly with them.”
Originally published by UKNIP.
