Man Pleads Guilty to Damaging Neighbour's Pond Over Noise
Gerry Duffy, 76, received a two-year conditional discharge after destroying a fishpond, killing Koi carp, and damaging equipment.
Image: Eddie Pollard / AI
Carla Rooney
Gerry Duffy pleaded guilty to damaging his neighbour's pond and fish in March.
Duffy, 76, admitted causing damage to a neighbor's pond, fish, water pump, and pipes at Willesden Magistrates' Court. The incident killed five or six Koi carp and potentially damaged the water pump and pipes, valued at £565.
Shahid Iftakhar stated Duffy had previously warned his neighbor, Andreas Ptohides, about the garden noise. Duffy told Ptohides, “if you didn’t deal with it, I would.”
Elliott Stern, representing Duffy, claimed the sound of the water pump drove his client completely insane. Stern further stated Ptohides initially agreed to stop the water pump but then reversed course, asserting its necessity for the fish.
Duffy was driven completely insane by the water pump's noise, having spoken to the complainant several times. Elliott Stern described Duffy's actions as out of character.
“Out of sheer frustration and lack of sleep, Mr Duffy, out of character, I would say, lost his mind and committed various damages,” Stern stated. Ptohides, the neighbor, claimed the total damage amounted to £800.
Duffy received a two-year conditional discharge order for the offense.