Man 'driven insane' by noise admits killing fish
A 76-year-old man in London has been sentenced to a conditional discharge after pleading guilty to killing his neighbor's fish and damaging property. The defendant claimed he was driven to the act by extreme frustration over the noise from a water pump in the neighbor's garden.
Why it matters
The case highlights the escalation of neighbor disputes and the legal consequences of taking matters into one's own hands regarding property damage.
Image source, PA Media Image caption, Gerry Duffy pleaded guilty to damaging his neighbour's pond, water pump and pipes as well as killing the fish
A man who admitted using motor oil and detergent to kill his neighbour's fish, after being "driven completely insane" by the noise of a water pump in the pond, has been sentenced.
Gerry Duffy, 76, of Hadley Road, Barnet, north London, pleaded guilty on the day of his trial at Willesden Magistrates' Court to three counts of damaging property and one count of unlawfully destroying fish in March.
The court heard Duffy climbed into Andreas Ptohides' garden to break the water pump "out of sheer frustration and lack of sleep", having warned his neighbour he would take matters into his own hands.
Duffy was given a two-year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £565 in compensation to his neighbour.
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