PARANOID SCHIZOPHRENIC WHO STRANGLED GIRLFRIEND IN COVENTRY HOTEL
A man suffering from paranoid schizophrenia has confessed to the murder of his 29-year-old girlfriend by strangulation in a hotel located in Coventry.Emachi Eneje, residing at St Catherine’s Close, Stoke Aldermore, pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the basis of diminished responsibility, having previously denied the murder charge.
Following the proceedings at Birmingham Crown Court yesterday, he was detained under the Mental Health Act.
The victim, Bharana Krishna Namoonty, was discovered face down on a bed by staff at the Formule 1 Hotel on Mile Lane, Cheylesmore, on April 30 this year.
The court was told that Eneje strangled her after an argument in the hotel room, then attempted suicide by cutting his wrists with a razor.
Prosecutor James Burbidge outlined Eneje’s history of mental health issues, which included two hospital stays in the US and Coventry.
Ms Namoonty, an immigrant from India, was described as an intelligent, hardworking, and compassionate individual who was pursuing a PhD in London.
Eneje, who held a first-class degree and was also studying for a PhD in robotics in London, had to return to Coventry full time due to his mental health struggles.
The couple had been meeting in hotels regularly over the three months preceding her death.
Burbidge stated: “It is evident that Namoonty was in love with Eneje and wished to support him.” Police apprehended Eneje after he crashed his mother’s car while leaving the hotel.
Defense lawyer Christopher Hotten argued that Eneje’s schizophrenia caused him to commit the act, despite Ms Namoonty’s efforts to help him cope with his condition.
Hotten emphasized their potential as a couple with promising futures, saying, “These were two people with bright possibilities who clearly cared deeply for each other.” Judge John Saunders decided that Eneje should be detained in hospital indefinitely under the Mental Health Act to ensure public safety.
During sentencing, the judge remarked: “I am convinced that due to mental illness, you killed her in the hotel room, but your responsibility was diminished because of your paranoid schizophrenia.
She was a highly intelligent and diligent woman with a promising future, loved by her family.”
