Heinz and Maria Ratke had a loving, successful marriage for more than 50 years, which makes his stabbing murder of his wife so bizarre, a judge has said.
Heinz Ratke, aged 73 at the time, has pleaded guilty to killing Maria, 71, in their Katoomba home in the NSW Blue Mountains in December 2020.
Set against the background of a 52-year marriage with no history of domestic violence, the case is without parallel, Justice Richard Weinstein told a sentence hearing in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
"The strange facts are that toward what would be the natural end of a long, successful marriage, there was an incident that really defies explanation," he said.
"A significant, serious incident that caused the death of someone who was for all intents and purposes a loving wife, and it was a mutual, loving relationship.
"It is bizarre."
Ratke's mental and financial health deteriorated in the six months leading up to the murder.
By December 2020, the couple was completely broke.
But the retiree, who had been the main breadwinner, never told his wife about their financial woes and did not take the simple solution of applying for government benefits, to which he was entitled.
His judgment was so impaired by this time that the only solution he saw was death, for himself and his wife, defence barrister Richard Wilson said.
Fairly quickly after coming to that conclusion, Ratke picked up a knife from the kitchen and stabbed her multiple times through her fruitless attempts at resistance, until she was dead.
He then made a "half-baked" attempt to take his own life and when police finally arrived accepted full legal and moral responsibility for what he did, Mr Wilson said.
"He is shattered by it.
"He took his wife's life and in doing so destroyed both of their lives. That's the tragic story of this case."
Ratke's genuine remorse and non-existent criminal history reduce his likelihood of reoffending and entitle him to some leniency, Justice Weinstein conceded.
But he showed a significant breach of trust in murdering the person who loved him in her own house.
Sophia Grebenar told the court losing her aunt has been devastating for the entire family.
"Our hearts are broken to a million pieces and that empty space will never be repaired," she said.
"We've all suffered through sleepless nights, anxiety, worry and forever seeking a reason why. We will never know."
In a letter read in court, Ratke expressed his shame and sadness for killing the woman he loved.
"Adding to this is the constant reminder of the fear my wife must've experienced at the hands of the person she trusted the most," he wrote.
"I've hurt the person I loved the most.
"I can never explain or excuse my actions.
"My wife never deserved this outcome."
Ratke is due to be sentenced on June 29.
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