A FACTORY worker killed his boss and left a team leader for dead during a bloody rampage at their workplace and then claimed: ''The Prime Minister told me to do it.''

Hishyar Baper, 32, who was working as a machine operator at a food processing company in Urmston, stabbed one of the men and battered the other with a hammer after going berserk over voices he kept hearing in his head.

Ferat Kesmez a 30-year-old shift supervisor suffered fatal knife wound to the throat whilst Kaveh Mohammadi, 27, a team leader was hit over the back of the head with a hammer.

Later Baper who has paranoid schizophrenia claimed he was ''being followed'' and said he heard the voices of the victims telling him life for him at work would be ''horrible''.

He said he also believed he had been drugged and that the Prime Minister was telling him to kill both men.

In a tragic twist, Mr Mohammadi was mistakenly arrested on suspicion of murder after another colleague who found Mr Kesmez's body in a locker room wrongly believed it was the corpse of Baper. He was later released without charge after Baper was found at home.

At Manchester Crown Court, Baper from Urmston admitted manslaughter and wounding after his not guilty pleas to murder and attempted murder were accepted by the prosecution.

The court heard there was little explanation for the tragedy at the Simpson Food Factory although it was known Baper and Mr Mohammadi did not get on, with Mr Kesmez trying to keep the peace between them.

Baper was reported by colleagues to be something of a loner, not socialising with other employees and taking meal breaks alone. The killing occurred on January 21 this year.

Prosecutor Andrew Menary QC, said: "At about 4:45pm Mr Mohammadi was washing his hands at a sink when the defendant approached him from the rear and without any warning struck him three times forcefully to the back of the head with a weapon of some sort, probably a hammer or pipe.

"Mr Mohammadi turned to face his attacker and was then struck again to the forehead causing a deep gash, with further blows to the body.

"Both men fell to the floor and Mr Mohammadi was attempting to prevent futher attack when the defendant bit him on the arm.

"Throughout, he was asking the defendant 'why? Why?' and the defendant said nothing.

"Other employees separated the two men, and the defendant was told to leave the area. He was seen by the afternoon shift supervisor, Andrew Siddall, heading towards the staff toilets and locker area. At that time he was carrying something under his clothing.

"While people were tending to Mr Mohammadi, one of the cleaners reported that there was a body lying on the floor in the locker room and that the lights were out.

"When Mr Siddal went to check, he found the body dressed in a way that he had seen the defendant dressed a short time previously.

"There was a large amount of blood on the body and the surrounding area and understandably though very unfortunately Mr Siddal concluded that the dead man was the defendant Hishyar Baper.

"This is what was reported to the police and it was initially thought that Mr Mohammadi might have killed the defendant - he was as a result arrested."

It was not until later that the identity was discovered when the police went to Baper's home and discovered him there.

Baper was admitted to a psychiatric hospital and falsely claimd he was the victim of a serious assault in Iraq due to being a member of a political party opposed to Saddam Hussein. He also wrongly claimed he had been imprisoned for two years without a trial during which time he was tortured.

Mr Menary added: "In fact he enjoyed a happy childhood in a close family that was well respected in their town.

"He entered into an arranged marriage in 2010, in Kurdistan but his wife did not arrive in the UK until after his arrest.

"Both his wife and his brother noted that his behaviour was becoming more paranoid. He spoke of being followed and of hearing voices, including the voices of the victims.

"They were telling him if he did not obey their instructions life for him at work would be horrible, he believed the victims did not like him and bullied him.

"He also believed he had been drugged and that the Prime Minister was telling him to kill Mr Kesmez and Mr Mohammadi."

A statement from Mr Kesmez's wife Samantha detailed how she and her husband had met while she was on holiday in Turkey and they had got engaged a few years later when she returned. The couple lived in Urmston with their two young children.

It is believed that at the time of the incident Mr Kesmez, who had worked at the family-run company for eight years and had been promoted several times, was supervising the shift changeover at the factory.

Samantha was initially told by his colleagues that her husband had left the factory hours earlier but when she went to the factory after he failed to come home his car was still there.

The next day police officers turned up at her house, she said: "As soon as they said the words 'I'm sorry' I broke down, I started crying, I just couldn't accept what they were saying.

"I thought they must have been mistaken. How was I going to tell my children that their babba, daddy would never be coming home?"

In mitigation for Baper, defence counsel Michael O'Byrne, said: "I recognise that this is a tragic case and the fact of the matter is nobody was aware that the defendant was suffering from an undiagnosed mental illness.

"The result of that is that two wholly innocent and thoroughly decent people suffered dreadfully as a consequence."

Baper was sent to a secure mental hospital and passing sentence Mr Justice Stephen Irwin said: "This is a tragic case for all who have come into contact with what happened.

"It's inevitable that those who were working in that factory at the time who were responsible will ask themselves the question 'could I have done something?'.

"But experience of such cases is that even intelligent people there at the time will have not recognised the severity of the mental deterioration which takes the form of increasing isolation particularly alongside normal activity in work and doing work normally.

"And Mr Kesmez himself appears to have concluded that each should be left to behave as they wish to - aterrible tragedy but not one that should evoke guilt from those working alongside Mr Baper. The impact on the families could not be overstated.

''Mr Mohammadi and Mr Kesmez were entirely innocent of any blame and one can only sympathise with Mr Mohammadi and both families for these terrible events."