A mentally disturbed patient, suffering from schizophrenia, was convicted of manslaughter and was sentenced to 23 years in prison by Justice Robert Shuster at the Nuku'alofa Supreme Court on 24 November.

Sepasitiano Manu, aged in his 30s, from the village of Matahau, appeared for trial on November 21-22 and was found guilty of manslaughter for the brutal killing of his father Tu'i Manu (57) with a chopping knife at Matahau on 18 January 2002.

January 18 was Sepasitiano's birthday and he was in the Psychiatric Ward at the Vaiola Hospital, so his family asked Dr Mapa Puloka, if they could take Sepasitiano home, to celebrate his birthday. The doctor approved their request and on that afternoon Sepasitiano's father, Tu'i, picked him up from Vaiola Hospital and took him to their home at Matahau.

The court was told that at their home in Matahau the accused took some food from the kitchen and was stopped by his father who told him to take just enough for himself, or he would be returned to the hospital. The accused got angry and left their home and returned 15 minutes later.

The accused went to the kitchen and took a chopping knife and walked towards his father who was sitting in the living room and had called out for the accused to come take his medication. He approached his father and hit him on the hand and head with the chopping knife.

The father was rushed to the hospital, but died on the same evening. The Crown Prosecutor said that according to Dr Faka'osi Pifeleti, who was on duty at the time, the caused of death was profuse bleeding from the victim's injuries to his head and hand.

Justice Shuster in finding the offender guilty of manslaughter on November 22 said that the accused suffered from Paranoid Type Schizophrenia and is mentally disordered under the legal definition of mental disorder of Section 2 of the existing Mental Health Act.

He said in his opinion the accused is not legally insane according to Section 17 of the Criminal Offences Act Cap 18. He referred to Dr Puloka's evidence who said that the accused had in fact planned what he did because he waited for all the people to go outside, waiting until his father was alone, and he took the chopper as his father reminded him of his medication.

Dr Puloka also clarified that he did not think that the accused was legally insane. He told the court in evidence that the accused told him that he heard a voice telling him to kill his father while other voices said no. He told the doctor he chopped his father with three cuts.

Justice Shuster said Dr Puloka said after one chop, the accused would know what he was doing, and he should have stopped, and that he generally knew the difference between right and wrong.

Sentencing

Justice Shuster in his sentencing told the offender that Dr Mapa Puloka who had dealt with him since his admission to the Psychiatric Ward in 1992 had found him not legally insane at the time he committed the crime.

“You have accepted that you killed your father and your defence was that of insanity, which acquitted you of murder. Fortunately, we have Dr Puloka who since 1992 knew very well your mood swings, and character."

He said Dr Puloka had initially refused to let him out of the hospital on this fateful day on January 18, 2002, but his family who came from abroad again asked for his release and Dr Puloka relented and released him for the day.

"You waited for everyone to leave the house before you got the chopper and hit your father twice on the back of his head and he died. It is my duty to protect you, your family and the public. In my view you are a danger to yourself, the public and anyone that comes into contact with you," said Justice Shuster.

"This is a deterrent sentence and one that is on the top end of the scale. You need protection, your family need protection and it is my public duty to protect others from you," stressed Justice Shuster.

On November 24 he sentenced the convicted offender to 23 years at Hu'atolitoli Prison, effective immediately, but backdated to when he was first arrested in January 2002. He also ordered that he receive treatment for life provided under the Mental Health Act.