Schizophrenic man sentenced for killing elderly mother in Leicestershire
Daniel Cook admitted manslaughter by diminished responsibility
A schizophrenic man who was described by his sister as being like Jekyll and Hyde has been handed a life sentence subject to a hospital order after stabbing his elderly mother to death at her home in Leicestershire.
Daniel Cook, 39, who has a decades-long history of mental illness, inflicted around 30 stab wounds on 72-year-old Ellen Cook using two knives in Biddle Road in Littlethorpe, on the evening of May 11 this year, leaving her lying in the road outside her house.
The defendant, who has had episodes of psychosis for more than 20 years and believed his mother was a witch, pleaded guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility in October.
During his sentencing hearing at Leicester Crown Court on Friday, the court heard that a couple of weeks before the killing, Cook accused his mother of poisoning him at a family dinner.
Mrs Cook sent a message to her daughter the night before she was stabbed to death expressing concern that Cook had "come to some sort of crisis".
Judge Timothy Spencer KC handed Cook a sentence of life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years subject to a hospital order, meaning he will serve his sentence in hospital until he is well enough to be transferred to prison.
In a victim impact statement, Cook's sister Melissa Cook said: "My mum's biggest fear was for Danny to do something violent and spend his life in prison."
On the evening of the killing, Cook followed his mother into the kitchen before his father Russell Cook heard her screaming, prosecutor John Lloyd-Jones KC told the court.
Cook's father went to the garage where his wife was on her knees and the defendant had a large kitchen knife.
Mrs Cook crawled through the garage but her son followed her into the street and began to stab her again, including while she was on the ground.
Mr Lloyd-Jones said: "The defendant attacked his mother again on at least two further occasions, returning to where she lay in the street, stabbing her again and again even though she was already clearly gravely injured."
When his father said "that's enough, you're going to kill her", the court heard Cook replied: "That's exactly what I want, I want her to die."
The defendant was tasered by police before he was arrested, body-worn camera footage showed.
Mrs Cook was pronounced dead at the scene at 9.48pm after being "very, very seriously injured and bleeding heavily from a number of wounds", including to her chest and abdomen, the prosecutor said.
The court heard that Cook, who sat silently throughout his sentencing hearing, had what is believed to be his first episode of psychosis at the age of 17.
In 2020, he stopped taking his anti-psychotic medication because he was "of the view that he was well", but the prosecutor said: "In truth, his mental state has gradually declined."
The sentencing hearing was told that Cook did not attend a mental health review in March this year, just two months before the killing, and he had an "illogical mistrust" of the NHS.
The court heard that in 2009, when Cook was 23, he told his mother "it's your fault" and took steps towards her with a knife.
Mr Lloyd-Jones KC said: "In the opinion of the defendant's sister Sophie, in the year prior to the killing, the defendant's belief that his mother was to blame (for his problems) started gradually to build momentum."
The court heard Cook, formerly of Atkinson Road, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, had a "warped view" that his mother had forced him to have medication as a child and accused her of being a witch.
Cook's sister, Sophie Jovetic, said in a statement read to court that "Dan was very much a case of Jekyll and Hyde", adding that his "dark side" would come out because of financial or work stress.
She added: "Do I think he is evil? No, but he's a very angry, dangerous man. Even if he gets well, he could easily slip into paranoia."
Ms Jovetic also said in her statement: "All (Mrs Cook) ever wanted was for him to be happy and healthy, and she had advocated for him through his life despite the stress he caused her."
Cook's father said in a statement: "Daniel has lost a mother and carer who loved him deeply."
Mary Prior KC, defending Cook, told the court that he had not been under the influence of alcohol or drugs when he killed his mother, although his previous relapses had been exacerbated by excessive drinking.
She said: "What Daniel Cook did has caused significant suffering and misery to his immediate family, and has, of course, caused a hole that can never be filled.
"He will pay a lifelong price for that because no-one was able to help him as much as she was."
Ms Prior added: "He will live an isolated and very difficult life. There are no winners in a situation like this."