Teen accused of killing multimillionaire grandma after he ‘got addicted to cannabis’

Millionaire and “inspirational” charity worker Sue Addis, 69, who owned the popular restaurant – Donatello’s and Pinocchio’s – was allegedly attacked by grandson Pietro, 17, as he lay in the bath at their £1million cottage in Withdean, Brighton , lay

A multimillionaire restaurateur was allegedly stabbed to death by her own grandson after he became addicted to cannabis, a court has heard.

Sue Addis, 69, the owner of popular Brighton restaurants – Donatello’s and Pinocchio’s – was allegedly attacked by grandson Pietro, 17, as she lay in the bath at her £1million home.

He is said to have stabbed her at least 17 times, causing fatal injuries to her chest and neck. He then left her to die in the bath, a jury was told.

Afterward, he reportedly called 999 and said, “I’m calling to throw up. There has been a murder.”

Today, 19-year-old Pietro Addis was tried for the murder of his grandmother during the third pandemic lockdown on January 7 last year.

Addis has admitted manslaughter but has denied a murder charge.

He cried in the dock when Lewes Crown Court heard details of the murder last year.

The jury heard the teenager had lived with his father Leo and stepmother in Brighton during lockdown.

As a student at a gastronomy school in Brighton, he had ambitions to become a chef and worked in the family restaurant.

But in the months leading up to his grandmother’s death, he had become a habitual cannabis user, regularly smoking a few joints a day, the court heard.

His behavior began to deteriorate and he began skipping college and often did not show up for work at the family restaurant, the court heard.

The teenager also reportedly started selling clothes so he could have the money to buy cannabis.

It was decided the teenager would live with his grandmother in her £1million cottage in Withdean, Brighton.

Mrs Addis was an extremely respected figure in Brighton’s business community and first opened restaurants Donatello’s and Pinocchio’s in the 1980s.

Her three sons Leo, Stefano and Mikele all worked in the restaurants, which were among the most popular in the seaside resort, attracting celebrities such as actors Bill Nighy, Katie Price and Premiership footballers.

Addis moved in with his grandmother, but he continued to smoke cannabis joints regularly, mostly in her garden, the court heard.

His grandmother had told friends, Sue Eastman and Denise Taylor, that she was becoming increasingly concerned about his cannabis use, the court heard.

She also wrote to Dr. Daphne Keen, the psychologist who diagnosed his ADHD in 2018, says her grandson constantly smokes “weed,” which combined with his drugs left her listless and slow.

She told her: “He suffers from paranoia and we all resent him instead of helping. He still says he can’t do anything without the Elvanse [his ADHD drug] but even with the weed it has become impossible to argue with him.

“He just wants to sit in his room all day and it takes an effort to get him to do anything.”

As the court heard, Addis was taking not only cannabis but also Xanex, an antidepressant.

Friend George Cameron noticed a big change in the teenager in the months leading up to the murder.

He told police his friend had become “negative and despondent” and also quite paranoid.

In the days leading up to his grandmother’s death, Addis had reportedly been acting very strangely – knocking on her bedroom door at night and telling her he loved her.

Rossano Scamardella QC, Prosecutor, said Ms Addis returned from work at Donatello around 4pm on the day of her death and sought treatment online for her grandson.

He said: “She was doing research on ‘The Priory, Ticehurst’, a private clinic/hospital for addiction and mental health treatment.

“She also searched ‘Brighton to Ticehurst by car’ – presumably to see how far away it was. Police inquiries from the priory indicate that no inquiry has actually been received from Ms. Addis, but it appears she is considering inpatient treatment for her grandson at a specialist centre.”

He continued: “What then followed leading up to her death is unclear. Only the two of them were in the house and no one but Ms. Addis and Pietro witnessed the events immediately before he stabbed her as she lay in the bathtub.”

Mr Scamardella said: “Pietro Addis is charged with the murder of his grandmother, Susan Addis. He admits killing her. His case is that he was suffering from a paranoid psychosis at the time, reducing his responsibility for the murder and has pleaded guilty to manslaughter to reflect that position.

“However, it is the case of the Crown that Pietro was not suffering any such psychosis at the time of the murder and he does in fact bear full responsibility for his grandmother’s murder.”

He said the jury will hear evidence that the teenager’s behavior and portrayal in the months leading up to Ms Addis’s death “is likely evidence of the effects of smoking cannabis”.

An autopsy revealed 17 stab wounds on the body: two to the neck, four to the chest, five to the abdomen, four to the left arm and two to the left leg.

Death occurred from stab wounds in the neck and two stab wounds in the chest.

Forensic scientists found three knives at the scene. The first was a large black-handled knife found on a bathmat near the bath. The second was a smaller, black-handled knife that was found under Ms. Addi’s body as she was being lifted out of the bathtub. Finally, police found a third knife in a jacket found in Pietro’s bedroom.