Murder, suicide, Coroner finds

Press, 9 October 1982, Page 4

Murder, suicide, Coroner finds

PA Auckland A man who beat his wife to death with a hammer and later died from a self-in-flicted stab wound to the heart was "paranoid in his belief,” that she was having affairs with other men. an inquest in Henderson Coroner's Court heard.

The Auckland Deputy Coroner, Mr Harry Israel, found that Mrs Eilia Ann Arnott, thought to be in her early 50s, of New Lynn, died on August 12 from injuries to her skull and brain after being beaten with a hammer by her husband.

Mr Israel found that Archibald Fotheringham Arnott. aged 57, died from a self inflicted stab wound. Detective Senior-Sergeant Lani Takitimu, of Henderson, told the Coroner that about 8.30 p.m.. on August 12. the upstairs landlord smelt smoke coming from the Arnotts’ unit downstairs. The landlord and his wife found Mrs Arnott seated on the sofa with extensive head injuries. They followed wisps ol smoke to the bedroom, where they found Mr Arnott lying on the bed with a series of knife wounds. The mattress he was lying on was alight and had caused some charring to his body.

Mr Takitimu said there were traces of blood in the

kitchen, lounge and bathroom, and an engineer's hammer was found in the kitchen.

Police found $7OOO. in-the bedroom, but from the undis-turbed-state of the unit any motive of theft or robbery was ruled out. Mr Takitimu said Mrs Arnott had been struck several blows to the back of her head, then Mr Arnott probably returned to the kitchen, stabbed himself and then retired to the bedroom. Mr Takitimu said Mr Arnott had been convicted of assaulting his wife in 1976 and had been remanded to Oakley Hospital. The hospital's records showed Mr Arnott ‘“was paranoid in his belief" that his wife was having affairs with other men.