A man has admitted stabbing his mother to death in Bradford.

John Makannah, 35, denied murdering Maria Nuni, 58, but pleaded guilty to her manslaughter when he appeared before Bradford Crown Court yesterday.

Mrs Nuni was found lying in a pool of blood in a snow-covered garden of a house in Springwood Avenue, West Bowling, Bradford, on January 8 this year. She had suffered fatal stab wounds.

Her son appeared in the dock yesterday flanked by four hospital staff.

His barrister, Graham Hyland QC, said the manslaughter admission was on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

Jonathan Sharp, for the Crown, said the plea was acceptable.

Makannah, originally of Sierra Leone, is on remand at Newton Lodge – a regional secure hospital unit in Wakefield. He has yet to be fully assessed by a doctor, the court was told.

Mr Sharp asked the Recorder of Bradford, Judge James Stewart QC, to adjourn sentence for 12 weeks to allow further psychiatric assessments to be completed. The judge accepted that Makannah was suffering from a mental disorder and said it might be appropriate to make a full Hospital Order depending on the findings of the reports.

He adjourned sentence until October 4 and made an interim Hospital Order under Section 38 of the Mental Health Act.

Police officers were called to Springwood Avenue by paramedics and arrested Makannah at the scene.

Neighbours said Mrs Nuni was lying in the garden of an end-terrace house.

She had stab wounds to the chest and was surrounded by a pool of blood in the snow.

She was taken to Bradford Royal Infirmary where she was pronounced dead.