Ian Baz Bosch.
Camera IconIan Baz Bosch. Credit: Supplied/Supplied/The West Australian

Man pleads insanity after bus stop killing

AAPCockburn Gazette

A MAN has admitted fatally stabbing a father of two as he sat at a Perth bus stop but argues he is not guilty of murder due to unsoundness of mind.

Ben William Cedric Daly, 30, is on trial in the WA Supreme Court over the death of Ian Michael Baz Bosch, 43, who was pronounced dead in hospital three days after being stabbed once in the neck in Coolbellup in November 2016.

The judge-alone trial heard on Monday that Daly had a long history of mental illness, including hearing voices, a paranoid schizophrenia diagnosis and stints in psychiatric facilities.

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His last admission was four months before the attack but his psychotic symptoms persisted when he returned to the community because he did not comply with his medication regime and had used amphetamines and cannabis.

Prosecutor Brett Tooker said the pair were strangers but might have had an interaction in the street before Daly followed Mr Baz Bosch to the bus stop.

The victim’s family left the courtroom before CCTV footage, taken from the nearby shopping centre, was played.

It showed Daly run in the direction of his home after the attack while the victim ran across the road seeking help.

Daly was charged four-and-a-half months later.