Man did not realise he was stabbing his mother when he killed her

A man who repeatedly stabbed great-grandmother Maria Brown to death at her central Auckland home did not believe he was killing his mother, but somebody who had replaced her.

Matamua Leati’oo, 50, appeared at the High Court at Auckland on Wednesday where Justice Sally Fitzgerald acquitted him on the charge of murder on the grounds of insanity.

The judge found Leati’oo had caused his mother’s death, but could not be held criminally responsible as he was insane at the time.

Leati’oo was charged with murder after Brown’s body was discovered by one of her grandsons on June 6, 2022 – her birthday.

On June 4, the day he killed his mother, Leati’oo was seen on Queen St setting small fires, documents obtained by Stuff say.

He was then admitted to the Te Whatu Tawera unit and later the Mason Clinic before being charged with murder.

“Upon his arrest by police, Mr Leati’oo repeatedly stated that he was working for the Prime Minister, who he suggested was also the mother of his children,” the judgment said.

Two experienced clinical psychiatrists both concluded Leati’oo was suffering from psychosis caused by schizophrenia at the time he killed his mother.

“Both experts refer to Mr Leati’oo’s interactions with mental health services in the years leading up to the offending, and the clear evidence of delusionary and persecutory beliefs on his part over that time.”

On the evening of June 3, Leati’oo stayed at Brown’s home and believed she had been “replaced”.

That following morning, he woke up with the immediate thought something was wrong, and he needed to act to protect himself or he would be killed.

“In short, due to the hallucinations he was suffering at the time, Mr Leati’oo believed he needed to kill the person – who was in fact his mother – before that person killed him.”

Justice Fitzgerald was satisfied Leati’oo did not believe the person he killed was his mother and did not know stabbing her was morally wrong.

Auckland’s Crown solicitor Alysha McClintock also accepted the only reasonable outcome in this case was a finding that the act was proven, but Leati’oo was not criminally responsible on the basis of insanity.

In Justice Fitzgerald’s judgment, she detailed Leati’oo’s mental health history which spanned over a decade.

He first had contact with mental health services in 2009, when he reported hearing voices.

In 2015, he was charged with assaulting a family member and reported he believed she had poisoned his food.

Justice Fitzgerald said Leati’oo belief’s of being poisoned had been a recurring theme over the years.

In 2018, Leati’oo reported being harassed over the years by several Samoan individuals and again reported beliefs that he was being poisoned.

Mental health professionals considered these to be delusions, and he was diagnosed with a psychotic mental health problem.

He was provided acute psychiatric treatment and prescribed antipsychotic medication.

In 2020, another court ordered assessment by a health professional concluded a “strong nexus between his untreated psychosis and recent violent offending”.

He was diagnosed with schizophrenia, complicated by substance abuse and was admitted to the Tiaho Mai in-patient unit at Middlemore Hospital under the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992.

In mid-2021, Leati’oo moved, but remained subject to compulsory treatment until October 2021.

He refused his antipsychotic medication, due to a belief that it was causing unusual side effects, and rejected mental health follow-ups in November. By March 2022, he was discharged from the community mental health team.

Leati’oo’s ongoing mental illness and psychosis continued while he was staying at Scotty’s boarding house in Onehunga.

To begin with, other residents said he was “normal and easy to get along with”, but from late 2021, he believed they were poisoning his food and drink and that someone was pumping gas into his room.

He was evicted and living on the streets, but would still regularly visit his mother who provided him food and a place to sleep.

“A particularly sad aspect of this case is that his mother was the only member of his immediate family who still supported him at this time,” Justice Fitzgerald said.

On May, 30 2022, mental health services were contacted after reports to police of a male, potentially with a knife, in the Fergusson Domain.

Leati’oo had followed a member of the public, who then entered a nearby gym for help.

When he was apprehended, it appeared Leati’oo was responding to hallucinations and initially said he wanted to kill himself.

The police contacted mental health services as they were concerned to his “vacant” state, however Leati’oo appeared to later be “settled” and was left to attend court.

“For reasons that are unknown to this court, no further mental health follow-up was arranged at that time,” Justice Fitzgerald said.

Leati’oo has been remanded in custody to the Mason Clinic until the disposition hearing later in August.

Another of Brown’s sons, Lani Bartley, whose birthday is on the same day as his mother’s, previously described Brown as a kind, loving mum who would always “make you happy”.

“She would be just another decent oldie, old-school elderly who are hard to find,” he said.

Brown had six children, 22 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

Bartley said his mother occupied her time with her own “mysterious things” – for example, she was well-known in the Māngere town centre after she had joined the walking Samoans group to stay active.

Bartley said his mother had decided to get hand tattoos, important in Samoan culture, at the age of 70. She had helped teach Samoan dance at Onehunga primary school for 10 years and helped with other Samoan cultural groups.

She would sit in the porch of her house in the sun and watch the world go by, watching and waving at locals and family.

Where to get help

• 1737, Need to talk? Free call or text 1737 to talk to a trained counsellor.
• Samaritans 0800 726 666
• Suicide Crisis Helpline 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO)
• Yellow Brick Road 0800 732 825
• thelowdown.co.nz Web chat, email chat or free text 5626
• Youthline 0800 376 633, free text 234, email talk@youthline.co.nz, or find online chat and other support options here.
• If it is an emergency, click here to find the number for your local crisis assessment team.
• In a life-threatening situation, call 111.