Heinz Ratke, aged 73 on the time, has pleaded responsible to killing Maria, 71, of their Katoomba dwelling within the NSW Blue Mountains in December 2020.
Set towards the background of a 52-year marriage with no historical past of home violence, the case is with out parallel, Justice Richard Weinstein advised a sentence listening to within the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
“The strange facts are that toward what would be the natural end of a long, successful marriage, there was an incident that really defies explanation,” he stated.
“A significant, serious incident that caused the death of someone who was for all intents and purposes a loving wife, and it was a mutual, loving relationship.
Ratke’s mental and financial health deteriorated in the six months leading up to the murder.
By December 2020, the couple was completely broke.
But the retiree, who had been the main breadwinner, never told his wife about their financial woes and did not take the simple solution of applying for government benefits, to which he was entitled.
His judgment was so impaired by this time that the only solution he saw was death, for himself and his wife, defence barrister Richard Wilson said.
Fairly quickly after coming to that conclusion, Ratke picked up a knife from the kitchen and stabbed her multiple times through her fruitless attempts at resistance, until she was dead.
He then made a “half-baked” attempt to take his own life and when police finally arrived accepted full legal and moral responsibility for what he did, Wilson said.
“He took his spouse’s life and in doing so destroyed each of their lives. That’s the tragic story of this case.”
Ratke’s genuine remorse and non-existent criminal history reduce his likelihood of reoffending and entitle him to some leniency, Justice Weinstein conceded.
But he showed a significant breach of trust in murdering the person who loved him in her own house.
Sophia Grebenar told the court losing her aunt has been devastating for the entire family.
“Our hearts are damaged to one million items and that vacant area won’t ever be repaired,” she said.
“We’ve all suffered by sleepless nights, nervousness, fear and ceaselessly searching for a cause why. We won’t ever know.”
In a letter read in court, Ratke expressed his shame and sadness for killing the woman he loved.
“Adding to that is the fixed reminder of the worry my spouse should’ve skilled by the hands of the individual she trusted essentially the most,” he wrote.
“I’ve harm the individual I liked essentially the most.
“I can never explain or excuse my actions.
“My spouse by no means deserved this final result.”
Ratke is due to be sentenced on June 29.
Crisis support is available from Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Support is available from Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).
Source: www.9news.com.au
