A 76-year-old man in London has appeared in court accused of killing his neighbour’s fish in an alleged retaliation over a long-running dispute involving noise from a garden pond.
Gerry Duffy appeared at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on April 14, where he denied multiple charges, including unlawfully killing fish and damaging property belonging to his neighbour.
Prosecutors allege that the dispute stemmed from complaints made by Duffy about noise coming from a pond next door, owned by Andrea Ptohides, in the Barnet area of north London.
Court documents heard that Duffy allegedly threatened to take matters into his own hands if the issue was not resolved, claiming the noise from the pond was disrupting his sleep.
He is accused of throwing a substance believed to be oil into the pond on March 20, followed by further alleged damage days later when water pipes connected to the pond were reportedly cut.
Prosecutors also said CCTV footage allegedly showed Duffy entering the neighbour’s garden in the early hours of the morning.
On March 26, three carp were found dead in the pond, with investigators alleging that detergent may have been poured into the water shortly before the incident.
The case further escalated after additional CCTV footage was reviewed, with claims that Duffy was seen entering the garden again between 2.32am and 3.08am on the same day.
Duffy has denied all allegations and was granted conditional bail. The case is scheduled to go to trial at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on August 4.
Authorities have not yet established a final conclusion on the cause of the fish deaths, and investigations remain ongoing ahead of court proceedings.
