Robert Han, who stabbed and bludgeoned his family to death, was awake and well aware of what he was doing at the time of the murders, a defence witness said yesterday.
Han, aged 36, is being tried on three counts of murder in the High Court at Auckland.
He has not denied killing his wife, Angela, and children, Nicholas and Christina, in their Manukau home last year, but is pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.
After opening its case yesterday, the defence called Dr Alexander Simpson, a forensic psychiatrist.
He had examined Han, who said a voice in a dream had twice told him that if he and his family died they could be together and all would be well.
Dr Simpson said Han implied that the voice had come from God because he "would not go along with the Devil."
The dream first came to Han when he was in Korea last year, where he had fled to escape gambling debts in New Zealand.
He had left his family in Auckland and was working to repay debts of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Dr Simpson described how Han's feelings of desperation built up while he was in Korea: his wife had a pregnancy terminated, he had argued over the telephone with his brother-in-law, to whom he owed money, and he was missing his children.
On August 7 last year, soon after first having the dream, Han flew back to New Zealand as a surprise.
The family enjoyed a happy weekend, eating a meal together and making a day trip to the Waikato.
On the Sunday night, Han made love to his wife but later dreamed of the same voice telling him that if he could just let go everything would be all right.
Some time during the night he bashed Angela with a hammer and then fatally stabbed her in the neck.
He did the same to his 2-year-old daughter and 4-year-old son, then tried to kill himself.
Questioned by Justice Tony Randerson, Dr Simpson said Han was awake and aware of what he was doing when he killed his family.
"Clearly by being aware that he mustn't wake his parents, he realised that other people would want to stop him doing what he did."
A witness for the Crown, Professor Graham Mellsop, told the court that Han was not insane at the time of the murders.
Professor Mellsop, a psychiatrist of 33 years, said that after examining Han and reading all the evidence, he felt the accused "did not have a disease of the mind."
He had not seen any evidence "to support a conclusion of insanity either in legal terms or as a lay person would define it."
The trial, before a nine-woman, three-man jury, is due to end this week.
Accused 'aware of his actions'
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