Moat inquest hears telephone warnings
Gun maniac Raoul Moat warned his ex-girlfriend he was “going to go crazy” after she told him she wanted him out of her life, an inquest heard today.
In a prison phone call which sparked his murderous rampage, his former lover told the 37-year-old bouncer that her new boyfriend was a “handy f****** bloke” who could knock him out.
The inquest at Newcastle Crown Court also heard suicide notes, including one to a friend in which he says: “Sorry mate, I’m done with it all.”
Moat killed his love rival Chris Brown, 29, in Birtley, Gateshead, in July last year, then blasted his ex-lover Samantha Stobbart, 22, leaving her in a critical condition.
The next night he shot unarmed Pc David Rathband, who was sitting in a patrol car outside Newcastle.
Moat died a week later after a stand-off with police in Rothbury, Northumberland, following a huge manhunt.
While serving 18 weeks for assaulting a child, Moat spoke several times to Miss Stobbart and, as was usual practice, the calls were recorded.
In one call, she tells him the relationship is over.
Moat says: “We had one argument the other day. Let’s not get all silly about it.”
He complains that “everybody is getting on my case” and that he is getting “picked on”.
The conversation ends with the phone being abruptly slammed down.
Days later, he calls and says: “You are the only person I have ever cared about.
“I can’t have you out of my life.
“I’m going to go crazy, man.”
Miss Stobbart tells him she has met a new man, warning: “To be honest, Raoul, he is a handy f****** bloke and he is a lot younger than you.”
Superintendent Jim Napier told the hearing: ``It is clear from the evidence that Moat's break-up with Miss Stobbart was the catalyst for his murderous acts.''
After the Birtley shootings, Moat rang his friend Anthony Wright and said: “I have got a gun. I’m going to do myself in.”
Police found six letters in his house which showed Moat intended to take his own life, Mr Napier told the hearing.
In one to Miss Stobbart he expresses his love for her and that he cannot live without her, adding: “Knowing you hate me is tearing me apart.”
In another to his business partner and friend Karl Ness, he writes: “Sorry mate, I’m done with it all. Please take the company if you want it. I can’t do this any more.”
Moat asks him to put money aside for his family.
“They appear to have been prepared by Moat and all intimated that he intended to take his own life,” said Mr Napier, who was in charge of the inquiry into the fugitive’s criminal activities.
After finding the notes, police discovered home-made ammunition and in the loft was a noose.
The coroner said an inquest was needed because “Mr Moat met his death when he was effectively detained”.
Barristers for the Moat family, the Chief Constable of Northumbria Police, West Yorkshire Police officers and Pro-Tec Limited, the firm that supplied new shotgun Taser weapons, were in court, Coroner David Mitford said.
The inquest will focus on the events in Rothbury on July 9 and 10 when Moat was found, he said.
There will be questions about weapons used, how police managed the incident, how officers dealt with the deceased and how he acted, the jury was told.
