GRANDSON WHO MURDERED GRANDPARENTS HEARS 'VOICE IN HEAD' PROMPTING VIOLENCE
Tobyn Salvatore, who changed his name from Jay Fell in 2016 as a tribute to characters from a television series, was involved in a fatal incident at his grandparents' house in Livingston on Boxing Day 2021.He was found to have used an 8-inch ultra-sharp kitchen knife along with a 10-inch butcher's knife to kill his 73-year-old grandparents, Denis and Mary Fell, following a dispute over a Christmas hamper.
After the attack, Tobyn changed out of his bloodstained clothing, took a bath, and then went to the police station to admit his crime, stating, "I've murdered someone - my grandparents." Police discovered Denis’s body in the hallway, and Mary was found in the living room severely injured, with her severed hand and a piece of her scalp on the ground.
Tobyn, who was 21 at the time, claimed that he heard a voice instructing him to kill, which he linked to the "Woman in Black" character from a horror film he watched repeatedly.
He also believed that if his grandparents died, they would be resurrected, citing a biblical quote in his mind during the incident.
A psychiatrist treating him identified that he suffers from schizophrenia and noted he remains a significant risk without ongoing mental health treatment.
He pleaded guilty to culpable homicide due to diminished responsibility and is now receiving care at a psychiatric hospital near Carstairs.
The court, presided over by Lord Young, ordered that Tobyn stay in a secure hospital environment with certain restrictions.
It was also revealed that he had purchased the knives online two months prior, intending to commit suicide, but the situation escalated into the assault instead following a dispute over the Christmas hamper.
Both his lawyer and psychiatrists stressed that he was suffering from a serious mental illness at the time of the killings and acknowledged the difficult recovery path ahead.
