'Time to move on': Reaction as Udo Haan found not criminally responsible for wife’s death, house explosion
A Kitchener man, who was charged with killing his wife and then blowing up their home in 2018, has been found not criminally responsible.
Udo Haan admitted he committed the offenses, but the judge found he was suffering from delusions at the time.
Haan’s home on Sprucedale Crescent exploded on Aug. 22, 2018.
His wife Edra Haan was found dead in the couple’s backyard.
It was later determined that she had been killed before the blast.
Her husband Udo was charged with first-degree murder and three arson-related counts.
On Thursday a judge ruled he was not criminally responsible.
Edra Haan’s brother was relieved to see the matter dealt with in court after waiting four-and-a-half years.
“It is closure that it’s over,” said Al Pinheiro. “It’s not really what we were looking for, I guess. But at the end of the day it was the proper call.”
In an agreed statement of facts, court heard that Udo Haan was increasingly paranoid in the time leading up to the explosion. He thought he was being followed and that he was going to be tortured and killed.
Haan also thought his wife was having an affair or somehow involved in organized crime.
The couple, who had been married for 40 years, were in the process of separating.
In the early morning of Aug. 22, Udo Haan strangled Edra and then opened a drop line that allowed the hole to fill with natural gas causing it to explode shortly after 8 a.m.
The Sprucedale Crescent home was destroyed, two neighbouring houses had to be demolished and other homes in the area were also damaged.
The aftermath of the explosion at Sprucedale Crescent. The house was completely destroyed, and the adjacent homes also caught fire. (WRPS / Twitter)
“He admits he did the act but he’s not responsible because of a pervasive, overwhelming mental disorder which drove the commission of this incident and was overwhelming in his mind,” said Steve Gehl, Udo Haan’s lawyer.
A psychiatrist who assessed Haan told the court he was tortured by his beliefs at the time, and in her opinion, he would not have committed the offence had be not been in a highly psychotic state.
Another psychiatrist who took the stand for the defense agreed with that assessment.
In closing submissions both the Crown and the defense said they believed the judge should find Udo Haan not criminally responsible by way of mental disorder.
The judge agreed.
The matter will now become the jurisdiction of the Ontario Review Board.
“He will remain in custody at whatever detention centre until he is transferred to a hospital where he will be appearing before the review board, where they will decide where he goes,” explained Gehl.
“Now it’s time to move on,” said Pinheiro. “This is behind us now and the future is ahead of us.”
Edra Haan’s family is reflecting on all she brought to their lives.
“She had a laugh that just brought everybody together, and a smile,” said Pinheiro. “She was always willing to help everybody, and that’s what we take away from this.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.