London: A 24-year-old man of Brazilian descent has been sentenced to detention in a mental institution after he admitted to the manslaughter of Indian student Tejaswini Kontham and attempted murder of her friend in London last year.
Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais appeared at Isleworth Crown Court last week where he was sentenced to a hospital order under section 37 of the Mental Health Act 1983 and a restriction order under section 41.
Morais had previously appeared at the same court on April 22 where he pleaded guilty to manslaughter (by diminished responsibility), and his plea was accepted by the court. He had also previously pleaded guilty to attempted murder of a second victim.
Detective Inspector Louise Caveen, from the Metropolitan Police's Specialist Crime Command, said: "This entire incident has been devastating for all concerned. One young woman lost her life and another woman will likely never recover from the emotional scars, even when the physical ones have faded. It is right that Lourenco De Morais will now receive treatment, however, nothing will bring Tejaswini back to her family. Our thoughts remain with them.”
An investigation was launched after police were called on June 13 to reports of a stabbing at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley, in North London. Officers attended along with paramedics and found 27-year-old Tejaswini from Hyderabad, and another woman, aged 28, suffering from knife injuries.
Despite the efforts of emergency services, Tejaswini sadly died at the scene, and her family was informed. The second woman was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening. A post-mortem examination conducted at Northwick Park mortuary on June 14 found the cause of Tejaswini’s death to have been a stab wound to the chest.
