Robert Tănase, 25, turned up at a police station and told police he had killed his ex-girlfriend – but the victim was later identified as his 54-year-old mother
A man walked into a police station and told officers he had just decapitated his ex-girlfriend – but it was actually his mum. Robert Tănase, 25, is reported to have handed in a bloodstained knife at the station, and confessed that he had just decapitated his former partner.
Despite appearing confused and incoherent, officers managed to coax an address out of him, and an ambulance was sent to the apartment on Friday night. Paramedics found a decapitated woman inside. She was quickly identified as the suspect’s 54-year-old mother, who he had moved back in with after breaking up with his girlfriend. Detectives believe he may have mistaken her for his ex during a “hallucination.”
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When asked why he had killed her, he reportedly replied: “Because she cheated on me with other people.” He denied that the victim was his mum and repeatedly insisted that she was his ex-girlfriend.
Tănase had returned to Murgeni, a town to the north east of Bucharest, several months after working in the UK. His social media profile still lists his address as Ipswich, despite him moving back to Romania.
One shocked neighbour told local media that she didn’t believe he was “aggressive”, but other locals say they often saw him wandering around aimlessly as he struggled to come to terms with his break-up.
A neighbour told Romanian publication Vremea Noua: “He came to the country a short time ago. He stayed in England. He was not aggressive, but suddenly this happened. We didn’t expect something like this from him.”
Forensic experts are now working to determine if he may have taken drugs or had been drinking when he attacked his mother. About a month earlier, Tănase reportedly wrote on social media: “Mother is a precious gift from Jesus Christ.”
He has now been charged with murder and could face 25 years in prison. Part of the initial investigation will focus on determining whether he may have undiagnosed mental health issues, or if he could be simulating a disorder.
In tributes, the mum was described by her niece as an “extraordinary woman” and an “extraordinary mother”.
However, some members of the family are reported to have voiced their support for Tănase, including his brother, who wrote on social media: “I love you and I’m waiting for you at home”.