The ex-wife of a famous photographer has admitted to killing her ten-year-old son with a developmental disability while struggling to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, after calling herself a “messiah” who had to “sacrifice my beloved son” “, according to a report.
Olga Freeman, 40, broke down before putting a sponge in Dylan’s mouth and covering him with a blanket between her toys at her Acton apartment in west London in August. of 2020, the Times of London reported.
In a court appearance Monday from a psychiatric hospital, Freeman denied the murder, but admitted murder as a result of diminished responsibility, the media reported.
Dylan’s father, famous and fashion photographer Dean Freeman, 57, was out in Spain at the time of his son’s death.
The boy, who had autism, myopia and major communication problems, needed care 24 hours a day and had attended a special school five days a week.
According to the Times, the court was informed that local authorities had not provided additional assistance to Dylan during the pandemic.
The week before his death, Freeman spoke of saving the world and being a messiah, and insisted that he travel to Jerusalem.
“This is my job: to sacrifice my beloved son to create a balance in this world,” he said in a recording.
Hours before killing Dylan, the Russian citizen had argued with her ex about her role in caring for her son, according to the court.
Freeman’s friend Edita Surpickaja told the court that her mother had struggled to meet Dylan’s needs and that her mental health had deteriorated.
Surpickaja had been helping Freeman about 12 hours a week, but the local council did not participate despite repeated requests, the court was told.
The night before he met Dylan, Freeman sent a message saying, “I’m done. Where are you?”
When Surpickaja got home, he found that Freeman had booked two seats on a flight from London to Tel Aviv and told his friend not to go into the bedroom.
“We must go to Jerusalem. I did what I did. Sometimes when things are good, it can be really bad, ”Freeman told Surpickaja, who hid his mother’s passport, according to the Times.
Surpickaja recorded a telephone conversation in which Freeman said he had no choice but to kill Dylan.
After an argument, the women walked to the Acton police station, where Freeman announced aloud, “I killed my son.”
Freeman told police he had tried to “gently kill him” by giving the child an overdose of a hormonal treatment for insomnia, but when that didn’t work, he used his bra and hands to strangle him. before inserting the sponge into your mouth.
Prosecutor Gareth Patterson told the court the murder petition was acceptable.
“Partial defense of the decrease in liability is available to the defendant as there was a severe depressive episode with psychotic symptoms at that time,” he said.
“This is acceptable to the prosecution after careful consideration and extensive subsequent investigation by the officers conducting this investigation,” Patterson added.
The judge adjourned the sentence until Feb. 11 after hearing the defense’s recommendation that appropriate action would be a restricted hospital order.
The father, who has been divorced from Freeman for some time, has paid tribute to his late son.
“Dylan was a beautiful, bright, inquisitive, and artistic kid, who loved to travel, visit art galleries, and swim,” Dean Freeman said.
“We traveled together over the years, spending such a memorable time in places like Brazil, France and Spain. I can’t begin to understand his loss, ”he added.
The grieving father has photographed well-known figures such as the Spice Girls, actor Bradley Cooper and model Emily Ratajkowski.
Dean’s father, Robert Freeman, was also a photographer of famous musicians, including the great jazz musician John Coltrane and the Beatles, for whom he shot covers of well-known records in the 1960s.
Following the guilty plea, Kristen Katsouris of the Crown Prosecutor’s Office said: “It was a tragic death of a child at the hands of his mother, who was struggling to cope.
“Olga Freeman had loved and cared for Dylan for many years, but the stress and pressures of her son’s serious and complex special needs had accumulated and this, combined with his deteriorating mental health, had heartbreaking consequences.” he said.
“Our thoughts are directed to all those affected by this case,” Katsouris added.