THE man who stabbed a 45-year-old to death in Westbourne after suffering from paranoia schizophrenia has been given a hospital order with no time limit.

Guiseppe Vittorio Zerega was accused of manslaughter in relation to the death of Fabio Menegon in Eldon Place in the early hours of June 19 last year.

The 31-year-old, who also faced two charges of attempted murder, was found not guilty by reason of insanity on all three counts after a trial at Winchester Crown Court.

And Judge Justice Mrs Jennifer Eady DBE disposed of Zerega’s trial on Friday, giving him a hospital order with restrictions, without limit of time.

At the time of the incident, Mr Zerega, who was living in Old Christchurch Road, Bournemouth, was suffering from paranoia schizophrenia which affected his ability to think clearly.

After hearing a voice telling him to attack Mr Menegon, he picked up a knife and fatally stabbed him 14 times. Two other people were injured in the incident.

Judge Eady DBE said: “Although you had no history of mental illness, it is now apparent that you had begun to develop a complex delusional belief system as a result of suffering an acute psychotic illness.

"In the early hours of Friday June 19, 2020, you started to hear voices, as if coming from a car outside, and then a voice in your head, which told you to kill or hurt Fabio Menegon.

"Acting on that command hallucination, you collected a knife from the kitchen, went into the bedroom where the 45-year-old Fabio Menegon was sleeping and stabbed him. The post-mortem autopsy found that Fabio Menegon suffered 14 sharp injuries to the head, neck, trunk and left upper arm. 

"There were, however, two others present who woke during the attack and who tried to intervene to protect Fabio Menegon and on whom you then turned, lashing out with the knife, hitting, punching and biting in your attempts to – as you said at the time – kill them to save them.

"The evidence of Professor Greenberg and Dr Malhan – which was accepted by the jury – was that you had not known that what you were doing was wrong. For the purposes of criminal liability, you were legally insane."

Judge Eady said that, once on the right antipsychotic medication, Zerega responded well and engaged with medical staff, including Dr Sengupta who said the incident warrants detention under the Mental Health Act.

She continued: "I am satisfied that you are suffering from a mental disorder that makes it appropriate for you to be detained.

“I am further satisfied that because of the nature of your actions, and having regard to the risk that you might commit further offences, it is necessary to protect the public from serious harm and it is not possible to say how long that will be so.

“A hospital order together with restrictions, without limit of time, will enable you to be treated.

"It will also protect the public; firstly, because it is potentially life-long and the regime for deciding upon release is stringent, and secondly, because the nature of supervision after eventual release from a section 41 restriction order involves ongoing expert psychiatric input and a recall to hospital is available if your medical condition deteriorates and you relapse.

"This is particularly important when the antipsychotic medication is likely to be needed for the rest of your life."