Mum of killer said she should have done more, inquest hears

Lisa Fraser was killed in her own home

The mother of a man who killed a woman in her home wishes she had done more to help him, an inquest heard.

The inquest is looking into the death of Lisa Fraser, who was 52, and found dead at her Pembroke Dock house in May 2022 with multiple stab wounds.

Jean Harris said she struggled to cope with her son Matthew's behaviour, describing him as "angry" and making "strange" accusations in the days before the killing.

"I have a thousand questions - I think he just lost his mind," Mrs Harris told the inquest in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire.

Ms Harris described her son as a "happy, social and active child" but noticed a change when he started secondary school and began mixing with the "wrong friends."

She said he denied using drugs, but she suspected otherwise.

When he was charged with murder, criminal damage, threats to kill and robbery on 15 May, he told police: "I am insane and need help."

Mr Harris was remanded to HMP Swansea before being transferred to Long Lartin prison, Worcestershire.

On 27 May 2022, he attempted to take his life, and died a day later at a local hospital.

Ms Harris recalled her son struggled with his mental health, often shouting and becoming moody.

She said she loved her son and they had a good relationship, but communication was difficult.

Mrs Harris told the inquest "it was hard for him to open up. He would just bottle it all up."

She also said that he began "self-medicating" after prescribed anti-psychotic drugs gave him headaches and blurred vision.

Mrs Harris said she was surprised to learn in court that her son had never been given a formal diagnosis of bipolar disorder or any other mental health condition.

Ms Fraser was found dead in her home, with a murder investigation then launched

Two days before Ms Fraser's death, Mrs Harris met her son, where he appeared "angry" and "mad at something".

He accused his family of poisoning him, and strangling him with Christmas lights.

On the same evening, he threw a bag on his mother's bed, telling her: "Mum, you're going to prison."

Mrs Harris admitted that, looking back, she should have acted, saying: "In hindsight, I should have sectioned him. I didn't think to contact his probation officer.

"We had seen these episodes before and usually he would just sleep it off."

Dr Owen Davies, a consultant psychiatrist who saw Mr Harris after his arrest, told the court he found nothing "terribly out of the ordinary".

The inquest continues.