Pensioner, 76, ‘driven insane’ by pond noise admits killing his neighbour’s fish with detergent & motor oil

A PENSIONER has admitted killing his neighbour’s fish by pouring detergent and oil into the pond amid a noise row, a court heard. Gerry Duffy killed five or six of his neighbour’s carp fish out of “sheer frustration” because the pond’s noise was “driving him insane”. Gerry Duffy arriving at Willesden Magistrates’ Court, north west London, today Credit: PA Duffy allegedly climbed over a fence and poured detergent into the pond Credit: Alamy Duffy, from Barnet, North London, had warned his neighbour Andreas Ptohides that he would take matters into his own hands if he didn’t do something about the noise. Today Duffy, 76, pleaded guilty at Willesden Magistrates’ Court to damaging the pond, fish, water pump and pipes in March. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Shahid Iftakhar, prosecuting, told the court the “neighbour dispute” had killed “five or six” of Mr Ptohides’s Koi carp, and potentially caused £565 of damage. Duffy lives in a studio flat which backs onto Mr Ptohides six-bed semi-detached house, estimated to be worth more than £1.2million. In the first of three incidents, he threw motor oil from his window into the garden pond on March 20. Four days later, water pipes supplying the pond were cut. The court heard Mr Ptohides reviewed CCTV footage and saw the retired builder climbing over their fence that day. On March 26, Duffy “lost his mind” and poured detergent into the water, killing the fish. Most read in The Sun Mr Ptohides said CCTV showed Duffy again climbing the fence in the early hours of the morning. The court heard Duffy had told his neighbour the noise from the pond was causing him to lose sleep. Prosecutors 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 didn’t deal with it, I would’ – there was a warning before the incident.” In mitigation, Elliott Stern told the court his client had tried to deal with the dispute without resorting to killing the fish. Mr Stern said: “The man has been driven completely insane by this noise, he’s spoken to the complainant several times. “They initially said they would stop the water pump going but then turned around and said that’s not good for the fish.” An environmental officer came to the house and told Duffy he either had to “move or close his window”, the court heard. “Out of sheer frustration and lack of sleep, Mr Duffy, out of character, I would say, lost his mind and committed various damages,” said Mr Stern. Passing sentence, Magistrate Matthew Cornish said: “We have heard about your health conditions, lack of sleep, and remorse for these offences. We have also heard you’re a man of good character. “We believe there was some planning, given the incidents occurred over three separate days.” Duffy received a conditional discharge of two years, with the warning he could be punished if he commits another crime. For the criminal damage, Duffy was told to pay £440 for the pond and £125 for the cost of the dead fish – totally £565. Magistrates did not agree a restraining order or costs order was necessary. Mr Stern requested the compensation be paid out of Duffy’s benefits at a rate of £20 a month. Duffy nodded and said “Thank you” as he was walked free from the dock.