Suzanne Lupica: Chilling allegations after Port Kennedy aged care resident deemed unfit for murder trial

An aged-care resident accused of bashing and smothering her roommate to death allegedly stuffed bloodied items into her wardrobe and her walker to hide the evidence, it can be revealed. Suzanne Lupica, 75, a former nurse from Zimbabwe, was set to stand trial for the murder of Lillian Catherine Donnelly, 87, at Bethanie Waters Aged Care Home in Port Kennedy on January 24. But earlier in December, Supreme Court Justice Bruno Fiannaca declared her unfit to stand trial due to dementia. Mr Fiannaca’s judgement published online reveals that State’s case against Ms Lupica was that she killed Ms Donnelly by using blunt force to her body and head, potentially smothering her with her body weight. Ms Donnelly, who had advanced dementia and could not speak or walk, was moved into Ms Lupica’s room four days before her death. She was found dead in her room after Ms Lupica raised the alarm at a nursing station at 3.30am asking for help because her roommate had fallen. When staff went to the room, they found Ms Donnelly’s bloodied body with her head “squeezed” into the air mattress she slept on to prevent pressure sores. Ms Donnelly’s face was covered in bruises and a blue blanket was covered with blood on the floor. The State’s case read that when Ms Lupica tried to walk up to her body but was stopped by a staff member, she said: “At least the bed stopped beeping.” Ms Lupica was referring to Ms Donnelly’s air mattress, which would beep when a feed of air was disturbed. A speck of blood was found on Ms Lupica’s neck. On the door frame to the ensuite were patches of blood, which were later determined to be a partial handprint. Police found a bloodied sheet and pillow in Ms Lupica’s wardrobe. After she was arrested, a police officer found another bloodied sheet in her walker. Ms Lupica told the officer that she had “put it in there when I realised I was in trouble”. The judgement also reveals that Ms Lupica had kept a notebook, which had entries detailing her difficulty sleeping because of the noise from Ms Donnelly. “She is vicious all night,” Ms Lupica wrote. “I hardly sleep every night. It’s destroying me. I’m exhausted with no sleep.” When interviewed by police, Ms Lupica denied killing Ms Donnelly, saying: “I couldn’t have done that. I absolutely couldn’t have done that. I hardly knew her.” Ms Lupica has been held in Melaleuca Women’s Prison since her arrest, with a short stay at the Frankland Centre, WA’s forensic unit at Graylands Hospital. A neuropsychological report and a separate psychiatric report determined that Ms Lupica has Alzheimer’s. Due to Ms Lupica’s mental impairment, a special proceeding will instead take place. Ms Lupica was remanded in custody until her next appearance for a status conference via video link on January 22, 2026.