– As previously confirmed by several sources, he has previously been diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic. He claims to be healthy at the present time, and beyond that, experts have been appointed to give a more detailed account of his mental health both at the time of the crime and at the present time, says lawyer Bernt Heiberg at Elden law firm to news. He speaks about his client Zaniar Matapour (43). Heiberg is one of several who defend Matapour after he killed two and injured 21 when he shot at several nightclubs in Rosenkrantz’ gate in Oslo on the night of Saturday 25 June this year. Monday 1 August is also the last deadline for several healthcare organizations to deliver information to the State Administrator in Oslo and Viken about which health and care services the accused may have received in the last five years. – This case is a high priority for us, so you will get a clarification as quickly as possible, says lawyer Thea Marie Lindquist Belseth at the State Administrator to news. Mental illness theme in court cases Matapour is charged with murder with terrorist intent. The police’s hypotheses are that the attack is extreme Islamist terror, a hate crime, or the result of mental illness. On Friday last week, Matapour had his first meeting with two of the three court-appointed experts who will examine his mental state, Synne Sørheim and Pål Grøndahl. Defender Heiberg confirms this to news. Bernt Heiberg (left) and John Christian Elden defend terrorist accused Zaniar Matapour. They do not know his entire medical history. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB Heiberg will not say anything about Matapour claiming to be healthy after the attack in June. – I note what he says to us, what diagnoses have been made in the past, and how the court has described psychological problems in previous contact with him. Repeatedly in contact with the courts, psychological problems have been described. – Is there any doubt as to whether he is healthy? – It is obvious, otherwise experts would not have been appointed. The condition for experts is precisely that there is a need to give a more detailed account of mental health. – Is this something that should have been caught because he has been in contact with public agencies? – In any case, it is easy to think that it is something that should have been caught at an earlier time. But then we have to go through both the supervisory case in more detail and see what the experts possibly conclude later. Looking for deviations from good practice Oslo Municipality, Oslo University Hospital, Diakonhjemmet Hospital and Lovisenberg Diakonale Hospital have been asked to hand over information. – There must be a certain deviation from what is called good practice, which is in a way a gold standard, in order for one to be able to conclude a violation, says Belseth at the State Administrator on health inspection matters. Thea Marie Lindquist Belseth at the State Administrator in Oslo and Viken says the supervisory case has a high priority. Photo: news Belseth speaks on a general basis. She says that what a former patient does in the time after he has received healthcare is not part of the assessment. – We do not relate to what happened afterwards, but to what the services knew at the time they were in contact with the patient or the users. – Absolutely central Defender Heiberg is very understanding that a supervision case has been established. – We think that makes sense. It is natural when a person with such a diagnosis undertakes such an action that you go through and see if the follow-up has been good enough in the past. – How important do you think the accused’s mental health will be in the question of guilt? – It is absolutely central. Both with regard to whether this is to be considered an act of terrorism, or whether this is the result of illness. Also with regard to the question of sanity, the question of the accused’s mental health will be important. He cannot go into what health care has already been provided, but confirms that Matapour has been in contact with the health care system for a long period of time. They have not been able to clarify whether he has received health care in recent times. – As of now, we have not obtained all the documents on that. He has also not wanted to lift his duty of confidentiality vis-à-vis the police, so the police have a limited opportunity to obtain that information. Heiberg will not say whether Matapour has lifted the confidentiality obligation towards his defenders, but emphasizes that they are in close contact with him. – We talk to him almost daily, but we don’t interrogate him.
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