Emotional scenes have unfolded at the trial over the death of paramedic and young father Steven Tougher, with harrowing details of the murder described in court.
Tougher was stabbed 55 times while eating outside a McDonald’s in Campbelltown, south-west of Sydney, on April 14, 2023.
Jordan James Fineanganofo, 23, admitted stabbing the 29-year-old to death but pleaded not guilty to murder by reason of impaired mental health in the New South Wales Supreme Court on Monday.
Screams of pain echoed among relatives as the court was told Fineanganofo approached Mr Tougher and, without saying a word, began stabbing him.
‘What are you doing? “Stop stabbing me, mate,” Mr Tougher told him.
At one point during the nearly four-minute attack, Fineanganofo told Mr Tougher: “Tell me you’re sorry.”
“Sorry mate, whatever you think I’ve done,” replied a seriously injured but still conscious Mr Tougher.
Fineanganofo bowed his head and covered his face as details of the attack were read in court.
A man admitted stabbing paramedic and young father Steven Tougher (pictured) to death, but prosecutors have asked for a special mental health verdict.
Outlining the evidence, Crown prosecutor Ken McKay SC said Tougher was unable to escape because he was trapped between the back of the ambulance and his attacker.
Despite the efforts of several members of the public to help, Fineanganofo continued stabbing Mr Tougher, even after the paramedic fell to the ground.
Passerby James Arthur ran in an attempt to help, kicking Fineanganofo and yelling at him to stop.
“They are going to kill him,” Mr Arthur said, the court was told.
‘Fuck, leave him alone.’
In response to appeals from another bystander, Fineanganofo was reported to have said: “I’m going to go to jail anyway, I might as well kill him” or “I have to kill him because I have to go to jail.”
Fineanganofo also pleaded not guilty by reason of mental health to a series of charges related to alleged incidents in nearby suburbs in the lead-up to Tougher’s murder.
They included accusations of threatening several people with a knife and assaulting at least one person.
Fineanganofo’s lawyer, AJ Karim, said the defense’s position was largely identical to that of the prosecution, including that the physical acts of the crime had been committed.
Both the prosecution and defense had contacted psychiatrists who agreed that Fineanganofo could be available to argue that he knew what he was doing but did not know it was wrong.
Jordan James Fineanganofo (pictured) admitted stabbing the 29-year-old to death but pleaded not guilty to murder due to deteriorating mental health.
Forensic psychiatrist Kerri Eagle, hired by the prosecution, determined that Fineanganofo had a mental health problem at the time of the crime and exhibited signs and symptoms of a psychotic illness consistent with a relapse of schizophrenia.
McKay told the court that Fineanganofo was accused of assaulting a neighbor in 2021, but rather than being prosecuted, he involuntarily entered treatment for mental health issues.
Hospital records indicated at the time that Fineanganofo had been isolated within his family home for a year with minimal interactions with others, becoming increasingly paranoid of other people, including his family.
His mother reported that he had been responding to auditory hallucinations and that she found a knife hidden in his room.
“The family feared for their safety,” the file quotes Mr. McKay as saying.
The case has been adjourned until Judge David Davies makes a decision on the mental health verdict on Friday.
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