Sleep deprived pensioner used oil and detergent to kill neighbour’s exotic fish

A pensioner used motor oil and detergent to kill his neighbour’s Koi Carp fish and destroy a water pump after being “driven completely insane” by the nighttime noise of running water. Gerry Duffy, 76, admitted committing the crime out of “sheer frustration and lack of sleep” by the sound of the pump running in his neighbour’s fishpond. Appearing before Willesden Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, Duffy pleaded guilty on the day of his trial to damaging the pond, fish, water pump and pipes in March.

It was revealed that he had threatened his neighbour Andreas Ptohides that he would take matters into his own hands if he did not “do something about the noise”.

But after the dispute over noise, the former builder sloshed motor oil and cleaning detergent into Mr Ptohides’ pond containing the exotic fish.

Four days later, Duffy was captured on CCTV climbing into Mr Ptohides’ garden in Barnet, north London, and damaging the water pipes and electric pumps.

Shahid Iftakhar, prosecuting, told the court the dispute had killed “five or six” of Mr Ptohides’s Koi carp, and potentially caused £565 damage to the system.

He said: “The defendant has previously complained to the complainant about noise coming from his garden and has said words to the effect of, “if you don’t deal with it, I will” – there was a warning before the incident.”

Mr Elliott Stern, defending, said Duffy had been driven “completely insane by the noise” from the electric pump feature and said the neighbours had discussed the matter several times, to which Mr Ptohides said he would stop the pump “sometimes”, he added.

However, the neighbour later said he would no longer carry on doing so because it was “not good for the fish”.

Duffy contacted his local council, which visited and concluded there was no noise, advising “he either move[d] or close his windows”, Mr Stern added.

He said: “Out of sheer frustration and lack of sleep. Mr Duffy out of character and I would say technically lost his mind and committed these various damages.”

He added that Duffy had been pushed “beyond rational thinking and did not think about the consequences” of his actions.

Mr Stern said his client had several health issues, including COPD, type 1 diabetes, skin cancer, and high blood pressure.

It was also heard that his health and declined both physically and mentally in the last year, and that he suffered from severe anxiety and depression.

Duffy lived alone after breaking up with his partner three years ago.

Magistrate Matthew Cornish ordered Duffy to pay £565 in compensation, £440 for the pond and associated equipment as well as £125 for the destruction of the fish.

He was also handed a two-year conditional discharge order, meaning if the 76-year-old committed further crimes over the next two years, he could be further punished.

He said: “We believe there was some planning given the incidents occurred over three separate days.”