Colchester murder accused may have been 'pathologically' jealous

Dr Antonella Castelvedere was an English and creative writing academic at the University of Suffolk

A man who killed his wife was "pathologically" jealous and had "abnormality of mental functioning", a court heard.

University lecturer Dr Antonella Castelvedere, 52, was found with multiple stab injuries on her kitchen floor in Colchester, Essex, in 2022.

Ertan Ersoy, 51, of Wickham Road, denies murder but admits manslaughter.

Forensic psychiatrist Dr Frank Farnham told trial jurors that he had spent three hours assessing Mr Ersoy.

Dr Farnham, giving evidence for Mr Ersoy's defence at Chelmsford Crown Court, said: "[The abnormality of mental functioning] is likely to have substantially impaired his ability to exercise self-control, to snap if you like, and I think if he didn't have those disorders he probably would not have killed [Dr Castelvedere]."

The victim died of a fatal stab wound to the neck and was found by emergency services on her kitchen floor

Dr Farnham said, based on his assessments, the defendant seemed to be suffering from a "clinical depressive illness of moderate severity".

Jurors were also told Mr Ersoy displayed traits of autism although the psychiatrist said: "He doesn't have symptoms sufficient enough to make a full blown diagnosis."

He added: "His personality structure and some existing autistic traits are there and I suspect the depression turns the volume up, or the temperature up, on those conditions and makes them more pronounced."

'Obsessionality'

Prosecutors have already claimed the defendant was motivated by "anger and jealousy towards his wife, his failings and his unhappiness" when he killed the victim on 1 June last year.

They said Mr Ersoy placed a listening device in their home at Wickham Road because he suspected she was cheating on him.

Dr Farnham said the defendant's "obsessionality" and "rumination" over an infidelity "suggested the jealousy had become to a certain extent pathological".

Mr Ersoy claims his wife was abusive to him, the court has heard, and Dr Farnham said: "If his account is correct... then that is relevant because someone with his sort of presentation might find it difficult to manage that."

However, the psychiatrist said: "As far as I am concerned, there was no evidence the victim was unfaithful."

Dr Castelvedere was an academic in English and critical writing at the University of Suffolk. The court has heard the pair married within three months of meeting one another online.

Jurors were told Mr Ersoy would not be giving evidence in the witness box.

The trial continues.