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A drunken son bludgeoned his father to death with a bottle of Bollinger before telling police: “I hate French champagne,” a court heard.
Police found Deekan Vig, 54, naked and surrounded by 100 bottles of champagne next to his dead father, Arjan Singh Vig, 86, after a whiskey binge in October 2021 at their home in Southgate, at North London, heard the Old Bailey.
Vig told officers when they arrived on the scene: ‘You’re too late. He has been dead for an hour.’
On the way to the police station, Deekan said: ‘I killed my dad.’
(File Image) Deekan Vig, 54, allegedly bludgeoned his father to death with a bottle of Bollinger champagne
He added: “I hit him over the head with a fucking bottle of Bollinger champagne.”
‘Why did I kill my dad?
I hit him on the head. I hit him with a fucking champagne bottle. Damn champagne… I hate French champagne.
Prosecutor Deanna Heer told the jury: “On the night of Saturday October 30, 2021, he and Arjan Singh Vig were beaten to death in their own home.
He was attacked with a heavy blunt weapon, most likely a full bottle of champagne, and was repeatedly struck in the face and head to the point of extensive and severe traumatic injuries.
‘Her skull was cracked, she suffered extensive fractures of her facial bones and her brain was so damaged that death would have been rapid, if not instantaneous.
‘At the time of his death, Arjan Singh Vig was 86 years old. The person who killed him was his son, defendant Deekan Singh Vig, and at the time of the incident he was 53 years old.
“The defendant accepts that he killed his father, that he did so illegally, and that his father had done nothing to justify such a violent attack on him, but, according to the defendant, he did not intend to kill his father or actually cause him harm.” serious damage.
On the day of the murder, Deekan’s parents attended an event at the local Sikh temple at 2pm.
(File Image) Deekan Vig admitted manslaughter but denied murder at The Old Bailey
They told their son they would be back at 4:30 p.m., but they stayed longer than expected to catch up with friends and didn’t return until 5:30 p.m.
When they got back, Deekan told them they were late and went to his room.
Around 9 pm, he started causing loud banging in his room and when his mother, Damanjit Veer, 85, heard him throwing up in his room, she assumed he had some kind of food poisoning.
He heard Arjan repeatedly tell Deekan: ‘Calm down. You are a good man.’
Ms Heer told the court: ‘It was at this point that she heard the defendant say that he had drunk half a bottle of whisky. She also said that she had drunk a quarter of a bottle the night before.
‘Now that was a surprise to her; as far as she was concerned, he never drank… She says he didn’t sound like himself at this point.
Police were called to find the house quiet.
Ms Heer said: ‘PC Francis tried to open the door to the defendant’s room but it was firmly locked… She could see there was blood on the wall and immediately radioed for help and an ambulance unit and called for help.
‘He yelled at anyone behind the door to open the door, identifying himself as a police officer.
‘There was no answer. He continued to try to push the door open and managed to create a gap of three to four inches, but he could feel a heavy weight pushing against the other side of the door.
‘He could see a head on the floor, it was the head of the deceased, Arjan’s, leaning against the door. He was covered in blood and brain matter.
‘Eventually, the defendant inside began to respond. He said that he could not help the police to open the door.
He said he was drunk. He said, “You’re too late. He’s been dead for an hour.” He was abusive and cursing.
The officers said it was obvious on arrival that Arjan Singh Vig was dead.
The defendant was lying on the ground. He was naked. The room was a mess with champagne bottles scattered around the room.
Deekan was punched in the face and tasered before being handcuffed and dressed.
He continued to be abusive, repeatedly telling police officers to “fuck off,” calling them “pigs,” and telling them they didn’t know how to do their jobs.
Describing the crime scene, Ms Heer said: “The defendant’s room did not appear to be being used for sleeping, as there were around 100 bottles of champagne on the bed with clothes piled on top of them.”
There were also about 10 Amazon boxes in the room, each containing three or four bottles of whiskey. Next to the bed was an empty bottle of Talisker whiskey.
‘Next to your [Arjan’s] body, two champagne bottles were found that appeared to have a significant amount of blood in them.
One was a bottle of Veuve Cliquot, the other a bottle of Bollinger. When the bottle of Veuve Cliquot was examined, it was discovered that he had several hairs attached to the blood.
Deekan lived with his parents on Chelmsford Road in Southgate, north London, in a four-bedroom townhouse that had been the family home for 40 years.
Originally from Uganda, Deekan and his family were expelled by Idi Amin just like others of Asian origin at the time. He came to the UK when he was about five years old.
His father, Arjan Vig, was a qualified accountant who set up a business as a merchant in London. Her mother, Damanjit, was a zoologist and worked as a teacher.
His younger sister, Rippan Vig, did well academically, built a successful career as a lawyer, and got married.
However, Ms. Heer told the jury: “it appears that the defendant had not achieved what he wanted in life.”
She said: ‘Looking back, your sister feels that growing up the defendant was a bit different.
“As a child I had been hyperactive, disruptive and impulsive. There was some suggestion that he should go to a special school, but his father refused.
He developed obsessions and compulsive behaviors. She describes him biting his nails, shaking his leg when he was sitting, or touching his face and nose in a particular order.
‘On the other hand, he was highly educated, he had a particular aptitude for some subjects, he was very good at physics, mathematics and astronomy, but he was never able to translate that ability into a practical career.
“His sister felt that he was frustrated and that his difficulties completing practical tasks affected his self-esteem.”
Deekan took various jobs, but most of them were short-lived, including working as a delivery driver. At the time of the murder he was not working and was receiving state benefits.
Ms Heer added: ‘He had no girlfriends growing up and had never been married… His social life was limited. He helped his parents around the house, fixing things and doing odd jobs, and for a time, he helped his father in the family business. He spent time on his computer.
Both his mother and sister describe their relationship with their father as “good” with Deekan sticking up for him and being patient with him.
Deekan’s mother described the defendant as having a short temper, but he had never hurt his father before, but he kicked things around in a rage.
His sister believed that he had become more tense and nervous due to the effects of the confinement.
Ms Heer said: “Indeed, it appears that the defendant had developed a taste for alcohol.”
Deekan, from Southgate, accepts that he killed his father and has admitted to manslaughter.
But he denies the murder, claiming that he did not intend to kill his father or cause him really grievous bodily harm.
The trial continues.