Mother who killed her son in ‘unspeakable tragedy’ handed hospital order

A mother who strangled her seven-year-old son to death has been handed an indefinite hospital order.

Louis Linse was found dead in his bed at home in Upper Market Street in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, on January 10 after being killed by his mother.

Papaipit Linse, 43, was handed an indefinite hospital order at Swansea Crown Court on Friday.

In a call to the emergency services following the incident, Linse admitted killing her son and told the call handler she had “felt like a robot” and was unable to stop herself.

Linse previously pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility but denied murder, which was accepted by the prosecution.

Three psychiatrists who had viewed her case had agreed her mental state was the sole reason for her killing her son.

One doctor told the judge he believed she was likely suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.

Addressing Linse, Judge Paul Thomas KC said: “Your son Louis was not killed by you because you are a wicked person, he died because at the time you were suffering from a mental illness.

“Had you not been so ill at that time it never would have happened and you would continue being a good, caring, loving mother to him.”

He added: “What happened to (Louis) was an unspeakable tragedy and I’m quite aware that his loss is quite unbearable for many people.

“I truly hope, however, that the reasoning behind the order will be understood by them.”

The court was played recordings of Linse’s call to the emergency services and body-worn camera footage of officers arriving at the scene.

She repeatedly told the police “I killed my son” and that she had strangled him.

Asked why she had done it, she said: “I felt totally mental this morning, I felt like a robot and couldn’t control myself and my mind.

“I was completely twisted, all kind of things came up in my mind, I felt like a robot, and I did it.”

Linse told the call handler she was unable to check on Louis because of what she had done.

“I did what I did, I can’t go there,” she said.

Caroline Rees KC, speaking for the prosecution, described Louis as a “brilliant and lovely little boy”.

Ms Rees described how Linse had let the police in to the property, who rushed to Louis’ room but were unable to resuscitate him.

She said: “He wasn’t breathing, there was no sign of a heartbeat.

“The officer immediately started CPR and resuscitation attempts.”

Linse was born in Thailand, she moved to the UK in 2017 to be with her husband and eventually settled in Haverfordwest.

The court heard her husband, Ed Linse, is also in a psychiatric ward, and the family had continued to have frequent contact with him.

At the time of her call to the police, she was also on the phone to her husband from the psychiatric ward.

Ms Rees said: “The Crown wanted to make sure that this had been properly investigated.

“The prosecution psychiatrist was asked specifically to look at whether this is copied from her husband’s mental health illness because she had contact with the system.

“We were able to say that was not the case.”

The judge heard there had been a decline in Linse’s mental state in the days ahead of the incident.

A babysitter who helped care for the children told police Linse had gone from being “put together” to “unclean and not looking after herself”.

She had also begun talking about conspiracy theories, telling Louis to stay off grass because she believed it to be poisonous, that there were spies everywhere and believing in a “new world order”.

The babysitter had become so concerned that on January 9 – the day before the incident – she contacted the safeguarding department at the local authority, fearing the children might be at risk.

The authority said they were aware of the family and would keep a close eye on them.

John Hipkin KC, Linse’s defence barrister, said: “This is an absolutely tragic case, the defendant will have to live with the consequences of what she did for the remainder of her life.”

Linse is being treated at the Caswell Clinic, a mental health unit in Bridgend.

Her release, if ever deemed appropriate, will be determined by a psychiatrist.

Detective Chief Inspector Gary Williams, senior investigating officer at Dyfed-Powys Police, said in a statement: “This is a terribly sad and tragic case, and our thoughts remain very much with all those who knew and loved Louis.

“We have worked closely with the CPS and independent mental health experts who concluded that Linse was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia when she killed her son.

“I would like to thank the team of police officers and staff involved throughout the past 11 months for their diligence, professionalism and care during this emotive case, and for their efforts in ensuring a full and thorough investigation was carried out.”