A 19-year-old man who stabbed his grandmother to death has been acquitted of murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
Pietro Addis murdered Sue Addis, 69, on January 7, 2021 at her £1 million home in Brighton by stabbing her 17 times while she was in the bath.
At a trial at Lewes Crown Court, the jury accepted his defense and found the cannabis addict not guilty of murder.
He had previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter and will now be sentenced on May 5.
Mrs. Addis was a highly respected figure in the Brighton business world, first opening Donatello’s and Pinocchio’s in the 1970s.
Her three sons Leo, Stefano and Mikele all worked in the restaurants which were some of the most popular in the seaside town, attracting celebrities such as actor Bill Nighy, model Katie Price, actress Michelle Collins and numerous Premier League footballers.
The court heard that Pietro had gone to live with his grandmother after a dispute with his father about the fact that Pietro grew cannabis.
Footage of Addis’s arrest showed him giving expressionless and monotonous answers to the police
Sue Addis, 69, the owner of Brighton restaurants Donatello and Pinocchio was stabbed to death
Mrs Addis, 69, ran the popular Donatello’s and Pinnochio’s restaurants in Brighton, which were frequented by stars such as Bill Nighy (pictured above with Mrs Addis) and Katie Price
Sue Addis with her husband and former EastEnders actress Michelle Collins
Mr Addis had been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in 2018 and his legal team claimed he was suffering from a form of psychosis when he walked into his grandmother’s bathroom and stabbed her 17 times while she was in the bath.
He then changed clothes and called the police to ‘turn himself in’. The 999 call was played to the jury earlier in the trial. In it he said, “I’m calling to turn myself in. A murder has been committed.”
Addis’ defense team argued that he had suffered a bout of paranoid psychosis and was unable to make rational judgments.
Tragically, the court learned that Ms. Addis was busy seeking help for Mr. Addis right up until the day he killed her.
After telling friends, she wanted to get professional help for him. She had used her phone to search psychologists in Brighton,” police said.
She had also researched rooms in The Priory, Ticehurst, a private addiction center.
Det Supt Mark Chapman, from the Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team, said: ‘Our thoughts remain with the Addis family and loved ones who have behaved with dignity and compassion during this harrowing ordeal.’
Mr Addis was acquitted of his grandmother’s murder
The court had previously heard that Addis’s behavior had worsened in the months leading up to the murder.
The teen dropped out of college and work at the family restaurant and was described as “depressed, paranoid, despondent, anxious and worried.”
The court heard that Addis’s family believed the deterioration in his behavior stemmed from his use of both illegal and prescription drugs. His family was so concerned that they flushed his prescription ADHD medication down the toilet.
After a heated argument with his stepmother in December 2020, the teenager was sent to live with his grandmother in Withdean, Brighton.
A little over a week later, he armed himself with a kitchen knife, entered the bathroom while his grandmother was lying naked in the bath and stabbed her to death.
The court heard that Addis had trouble controlling his anger and had often resorted to punching walls or himself.
In the days leading up to the alleged murder, Ms Addis told a friend that her grandson had been behaving “strangely”.
He started banging on his grandmother’s bedroom door at night to tell her he loved her.
The court heard that Pietro’s parents separated not long after his birth and that his mother died when he was six years old.
In the summer of 2019, Pietro started smoking cannabis.
