A GP has admitted plotting to kill his mother’s partner by disguising himself as a community nurse and poisoning him with a fake COVID booster jab.
Thomas Kwan, 53, was on trial at Newcastle Crown Court and had initially denied attempted murder, but changed his plea after he heard the prosecution open the case against him.
Police initially thought the married father-of-one used the chemical weapon ricin to try to kill 72-year-old Patrick O’Hara at his mother’s home in St Thomas Street, Newcastle, on 22 January, but an expert believed a pesticide was more likely.
Kwan sparked a major emergency services operation when police found lethal chemicals stored in the detached garage at his home in Ingleby Barwick, Teesside.
The Sunderland-based GP had already pleaded guilty to administering a noxious substance, claiming he meant to cause no more than mild pain.
Prosecutors said he meant to kill his mother’s partner of more than 20 years, who developed a rare flesh-eating disease as a result of the jab in his arm.
The Hong Kong-born doctor had developed an “encyclopaedic knowledge” of poisons, the court heard, and he studied how to get away with murder, police discovered from analysis of his home computers.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the fullest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow @SkyNews on X or subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
