Porirua Man With Disorder Facing Charges For Beheading Duck With Bare Hands

It would take someone with excessive force to behead any animal with his bare hands. Hence, some may have a hard time believing how an 18-year-old man could pull it off especially considering he was diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.

Now 20-years-old, the man whose identity was not divulged is at risk of reoffending according to a judge. He was found fit to stand trial last year and is due for sentencing for the gruesome charge.

The only details shared about the man is that he is from Porirua and a resident at the Lower Whitby Lake in January last year. At that time, there were several ducks in the lake area located at the Whitby Shopping Village. The suspect singled out one duck, trapped it at the base of two large trees that were about 20 meters away from the playground according to the summary of facts gathered by the NZ Herald.

"The defendant picked up the duck and has wrung its neck with such severity he tore the head from the duck's body," the summary read.

The man was questioned by police a week later about offending. He admitted killing the duck but could not clearly explain his actions. Take note that all this happened when he was only 18 and unemployed.

When he appeared at the Porirua District Court recently, he broke down in tears. The man pleads guilty in July last year to one charge of ill-treating an animal. He was supposed to be charged with breaking a duck’s wing as well but such has been withdrawn.

Taking his condition into consideration, Judge Jan Kelly explained that a multi-disciplinary meeting would be needed to address concerns that the man could be at a very high risk of reoffending. Safety measures must be taken especially since his mental health has been steadily deteriorating.

"[His] situation is unique to his age with multiple underlying concerns," Judge Kelly said.

To avoid it from escalating, the need to for some intervention is needed. An interim suppression order has been granted so that parties could file submissions to the matter.