Australian who killed wife deemed unfit to stand trial

John Paul Sebastian suffering from paranoid psychotic disorder; prosecution agrees to end legal proceedings against him.

By JOANNA PARASZCZUK
Suspect in court judge handcuffs arrest hearing 311 (photo credit: Thinkstock/Imagebank)
Suspect in court judge handcuffs arrest hearing 311
(photo credit: Thinkstock/Imagebank)
The Tel Aviv District Court ruled on Monday to end legal proceedings against John Paul Sebastian, the Australian tourist suspected of murdering his wife, on the grounds that he is not fit to stand trial.
Judge Nurit Ahituv made the ruling after a psychiatric review concluded Sebastian is suffering from a prolonged and severe paranoid psychotic illness, as a result of which he was delusional when he stabbed and killed his wife in their Dan Panorama hotel room in August. The prosecution agreed to the cessation of proceedings against Sebastian.
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Proceedings will now begin to transfer Sebastian, who is currently hospitalized in an Israeli facility, back to Australia.
After Sebastian’s arrest, police said that the Australian had been found in the hotel room, sitting on the bed next to a knife, his clothes covered in blood.
Sebastian also had deep cuts on his arm that required stitches. The hotel’s security officer had been the first to arrive on the scene after other hotel guests called to complain of shouts coming from the hotel room.
During police questioning, Sebastian initially claimed he had acted in self-defense but later changed his story when confronted with evidence against him. He told investigators where he had obtained the knife, and explained that he had stabbed the victim because she had ruled over him for years using a power of attorney that she refused to cancel. Sebastian had also told police officers who arrived at the scene of the stabbing that the victim was an “enemy agent.”