Tshilumba is still delusional, jury told

Randy Tshilumba could not tell right from wrong when he fatally stabbed Clémence Beaulieu-Patry at her place of work, a psychiatrist told a jury on Tuesday.

France Proulx is the second psychiatrist to deliver an opinion that Tshilumba, 21, suffered from a mental health illness when he stabbed Beaulieu-Patry several times on April 10, 2016, while she was working a shift at the Maxi supermarket on Papineau Ave.

In an evaluation, Proulx wrote that the “most probable” diagnosis for what Tshilumba suffers from is paranoid schizophrenia. But while testifying, Proulx made a lengthy aside from her report and said that, despite having been treated at the Philippe Pinel Institute since Aug. 2 (and having been prescribed a low dose of anti-psychotic medication), he is under the delusion that five young women are out to get him.

When he testified in his defence, Tshilumba said he killed BeaulieuPatry because he believed she and four of her friends — women he barely knew when they went to high school together — were plotting to kill him.

Proulx said renovations are underway at Philippe Pinel Institute, which Tshilumba says he believes were arranged for by the women as part of the plot to kill him. Part of the work has included the creation of a large hole that is sometimes visible to Tshilumba.

“He is convinced they will use the hole to get him,” Proulx said, adding that staff at Pinel try to reassure him that his fears are imagined. “He replies: ‘That is nice of you to say, but I know they are coming.’ ”

Proulx also told the jury he keeps making reference to the same five women, including Beaulieu-Patry. Her testimony suggested he still refers to Beaulieu-Patry in the present tense, as if she were still alive. Defence lawyer Sébastien Chartrand tried to get Proulx to clarify this point, but she did not appear to understand the point of his question.

The psychiatrist said Tshilumba also says he believes the five women can access the kitchen at Pinel and will poison his food. Pinel is along the path aircraft use to land at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Dorval and, Proulx said, Tshilumba says he believes the young women will use a helicopter to access Pinel to get to him.

Last week, psychiatrist Louis Morissette provided a similar evaluation to the jury and said he believes the accused suffers from persecutory delusions.

Morissette also determined that Tshilumba could not tell right from wrong when he killed Beaulieu-Patry.

Earlier in the day Tuesday, Tshilumba’s best friend, John Elton Louis, 22, was called as a defence witness and testified that the accused did express fears that a group of young women were out to get him shortly before he killed Beaulieu-Patry.

Louis said that late in 2015, Tshilumba began making references to people he believed were intimidating him on Facebook. He also said that a short while later, in January 2016, Tshilumba was more specific and gave more details about his claims. Louis said he invited Tshilumba to his home so they could discuss the matter. He said Tshilumba claimed a small group of women “wanted his life” and were posting anonymous and threatening messages on Spotted, a Facebook page. He said Tshilumba did not name Beaulieu-Patry, but did mention the first name of one of her friends.

Louis said he was already reluctant to believe his friend based on what Tshilumba had told him late in 2015.

“He said it was a group of girls. To confront him on this, I asked him to show me the Facebook page. I didn’t see any threats and I told him this. He said, ‘You are not in my place. You can’t understand,’ ” Louis said. “I said it was craziness (and) ‘You’re paranoid. Concentrate on school.’ ”

The trial resumes on Wednesday.