Leeds murder accused Mark Barrott tells jury he thought he was 'killing demon' inside wife Eileen when strangling her at their Whinmoor home

Mark Barrott is accused of murdering Eileen Barrott at their home in Naburn Fold, Whinmoor, on August 15, 2021.

While Barrott admits manslaughter, he has pleaded not guilty to murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to his mental health.

The 55-year-old took to the stand for the first time on Friday to be questioned by his barrister, Jason Pitter QC.

Wearing an orange prison-issued t-shirt and flanked by three nurses and a security officer, he described in detail the final moments of his wife's life from the witness box.

Barrott said he had not intended to kill his wife but admitted that he was responsible for her death.

He said Eileen had been due to leave their home on the day that she was killed and she had previously told him something had "died" in their marriage.

Barrott said she also told him to go to a monastery in Scotland to "heal himself" after she was due to leave.

He told the jury that he had "questioned" his wife throughout the morning of August 15 until her expected departure at lunchtime, with the pair using tarot cards together.

The court heard they had been talking in their bedroom and he had tried to delay her leaving by going downstairs to fetch some tools, including a hammer, to help fix the bedroom door.

"I was only doing it half-heartedly so I could continue to question my wife", Barrott told the jury.

At one stage of his questioning, Eileen wanted to go to the bathroom and had tried to push past him, Barrott said.

After delaying her, he said that she tried a second time, got "irate" and pushed his head into the door.

In reaction, Barrott swung the hammer at her head.

Eileen "yelped" and "stumbled back", Barrott told the jury.

He said she crouched, holding her head and he felt "trembly with dread".

"She was looking at me and I was looking at her", he said. "I could sense she had a demon inside of her at that point in time."

Barrott said he anticipated Eileen was going to move towards him and he threw the hammer at her.

Eileen approached him and the pair grabbed each other's throats and tussled, he said.

Barrott told the jury that he believed there was "a demon" inside his wife.

"I was looking at her and it was just an overwhelming feeling that there were demons controlling the sequence of events", he said.

Barrott said he felt "detached" from himself and "reality didn't feel the same" during the incident.

The pair fell to the floor holding each other's throats, according to Barrott.

"I didn't feel her hands around me or my hands around her", he added. "It felt unreal and I only recall letting go of her neck. I didn't have the intention of strangling the life out of her."

Mr Pitter asked: "While you had your hands around her neck, at that time what do you think you were doing?"

Barrott replied: "I was feeling like I was killing the demon inside of her."

After the incident, Barrott said he still believed his wife was alive and moved her downstairs.

He told the jury she didn't speak to him, but he believed she was still breathing.

Barrott fled the house and told the jury he wanted to get "away from the demonic presence" that he was sensing in the building.

When questioned, he said he believed his wife was still alive when he left the house.

"I wanted to get away from the demonic presence I felt inside the house", he added.

"I wanted out of the house and to get away from my wife because I still felt she may have a demon present, a demonic spirit inside of her.

"I wasn't thinking of what I had done."

When asked if he had intended to kill his wife, Barrott said: "I had no intention. I did not deliberately kill my wife."

The court previously heard that around 3.5 hours after leaving his home, Barrott sent a text message to a childhood friend and his therapist. He urged them to call an ambulance and the police for Eileen, before claiming he was "going to go away to die now".

After travelling to Edinburgh, he then made his way to Aberdeen and ultimately to Elgin the following day, where he took refuge in an abbey. He told the monks there that his name was John Connolly and gave a fake address in Hull.

Police Scotland officers attended the abbey and found Barrott hiding in a confessional box.

Giving evidence, Barrott said that he was trying to evade police and was scared of a police dog in attendance biting him.

He said he had planned to take his own life while in Scotland.

"I wanted the opportunity to kill myself and I felt I had lost that opportunity [when the police arrived]," Barrott told the jury.

He said he believed his soul would be "safe from the demons" if he had taken his own life in the monastery as it was a religious institution.

While Barrott was being transferred to Leeds, he was heard saying "this is a bad dream" and making comments about "demons".

Jurors were earlier told Barrott had often displayed obsessive compulsive and controlling behaviours to members of his own family.

He would regularly follow Eileen when she went on nights out with her friends and would even track her remotely by putting a device into her handbag.

The jury was also told Barrott would turn up to his wife's work events and behave in a jealous manner.

The trial continues.