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A man has been convicted of murder after fatally attacking his girlfriend and three of her family members while under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
Joshua Jacques was charged with the murder of four individuals: Samantha Drummonds (27), Tanysha Ofori-Akuffo (45), Dolet Hill (64), and Denton Burke (58) on April 25th of the previous year.
On Thursday, the 29-year-old was found guilty for the murders.
Joshua Jacques has been convicted of committing four homicides.
The police were summoned to Ms Hill’s house on Delaford Road in Bermondsey, south London, during the early morning hours. They discovered Mr Burke’s body at the bottom of the stairs and the three women in the kitchen.
The police discovered Mr. Burke’s deceased body at the bottom of the staircase and the three women were found clustered together in the kitchen.
Armed officers discovered Jacques naked and lying in the upstairs bathroom in a praying position, screaming “Allah, take me!”, “Kill me now”, “Get rid of me”, and “God please forgive me”.
Afterwards, at Lewisham Hospital, Jacques stated: “I am not at fault, I did it as a sacrifice,” and also cautioned: “I may do something foolish again.”
He acknowledged his acts of manslaughter, but claimed that he was not guilty of murder due to his mental health condition at the time.
The jury at Old Bailey spent two hours in deliberation before finding Jacques, who resides on Minard Road in Lewisham, guilty of four counts of murder on Thursday.
The family members of the victims were relieved and expressed their gratitude for the unanimous verdicts, with one person saying “thank you, Jesus”.
As the jury foreman announced each of the four guilty verdicts, the defendant lowered his head and shook it in disappointment.
Mr. Justice Bryan postponed the sentencing to February 9 and ordered Jacques to be held in custody.
In the past, attorney Tom Little KC stated: “The prosecution’s argument is that this is a blatant instance of homicide, or more accurately, a blatant instance of four counts of murder.”
He contended that Jacques’ capacity for making logical decisions and managing his actions was not significantly hindered by any mental disorder, and that his actions were a result of “intoxication caused by his own actions, including drug use and alcohol consumption.”
The defendant’s lawyer argued that this event resulted in a temporary psychotic disorder that did not fulfill the criteria for a partial defense of diminished responsibility.
The jurors were informed that Jacques had a total of 11 prior convictions for 20 different offenses, which included charges related to cannabis, possession of a silver knuckle duster, and robbery.
In April 2016, he underwent a mental health evaluation after being hospitalized for drinking water from a toilet.
He was taken into custody after making threats to stab and shoot a security officer. While in police custody, he proceeded to throw food around his cell.
He stated that he consumed 3g of skunk cannabis daily and refused to consider reducing his intake, claiming he would continue using marijuana even if it resulted in his death.
In 2018, he was placed under the Mental Health Act following his presence in the middle of a busy road in Brixton, south London while praying. He remained in the hospital from April 27 until approximately August 7 of that same year.
At the time of admission, it was believed that the individual was experiencing drug-induced mania with psychotic symptoms, according to statements from jurors.
In February of 2020, he received a 51-month prison sentence for participating in a plot to distribute heroin and crack cocaine, as well as being in possession of cannabis. He was released on November 11th, 2021.
In the April probation reports of last year, Jacques was characterized as talkative and involved.
Three days prior to the murder, he contacted his probation officer to inform them that he had been presented with a job opportunity at a radio station.
After two days, Ms. Drummonds told a friend that she thought Jacques was experiencing an “episode” and had been talking all night about certain topics.
According to Mr. Little’s testimony, there were no requests for medical assistance made prior to the killings and Jacques was not transported to a hospital.
On April 25th, Jacques paid his second visit to the residence of Mr Burke and Ms Hill.
According to Mr. Little, Ms. Ofori-Akuffo, also known as Racquel, occasionally stayed at the property to take care of her mother who was undergoing cancer treatment. Meanwhile, Ms. Drummonds had been living there while her own apartment was being renovated.
Following Jacques’ assault, Ms. Drummonds contacted his mother, Norma Derrivere, but all she could say was “Norma, he’s starting to… to… ugh.”
Jacques and his mother had several FaceTime conversations that evening. During one of the calls, which took place after 2am, he told her, “I’m going to end things and make a sacrifice.”
Alice Canal, who lives nearby, heard a cat making loud noises, a man using profanity, sounds of activity, knocking, and what she interpreted as someone falling down the stairs. This caused her to contact emergency services at approximately 1:42am.
It was stated that Jacques displayed signs of mania that align with the symptoms of bipolar disorder.
On April 19 of last year, just days prior to the killings, he increased his consumption of skunk cannabis by two times since his birthday.
The defense argued that the escalation occurred several weeks after he started experiencing difficulty sleeping, which was a sign of mania.
Source: independent.co.uk
