A park ranger accused of murdering his wife told a consultant psychiatrist he was "on a mission from God," a court has heard.
James Kilroy has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the murder of Valerie French Kilroy at their rural home at Kilbree Lower, Westport in Co Mayo between 13 and 14 June 2019.
The trial has heard that gardaí detained Mr Kilroy under the Mental Health Act after he was seen acting in an unusual manner and walking around naked on 14 June 2019.
The 50-year-old was taken to a hospital in Castlebar and was assessed.
Consultant psychiatrist Dr Camilla Curtis agreed with prosecuting counsel that Mr Kilroy told her he believed his wife Valerie was working against him and wanted to harm him.
The court heard Dr Curtis asked him if he was a religious man and he replied that he had become more religious of late and was "on a mission from God to kill his wife".
She asked him if he had fulfilled that mission and he said he did not remember.
Mr Kilroy said he had three choices; to kill himself, die alone in agony in ten years or the world would come to an end in 55 years if he kept on living.
Dr Curtis agreed that Mr Kilroy told her he was being watched by bodyguards.
During the assessement, Mr Kilroy told Dr Curtis that his wife's body was in a Ford van at the shed and said: "I stabbed her using a kitchen knife to her throat."
Previously, the court heard that gardaí arrived at the house at 3pm on 14 June 2019 and found a "Ford camper van parked face-first into a shed".
There was a large amount of blood alongside the camper van, and inside they found the body of Ms French Kilroy.
The scene was preserved and an "extensive" garda investigation began.
A post-mortem examination, carried out by Chief State Pathologist Dr Linda Mulligan, reported the cause of death to have been ligature strangulation, blunt force trauma and a stab wound to the neck.
The trial continues before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of seven women and five men, and is expected to last up to three weeks.
