A psychiatric patient tried to strangle a hospital worker be-cause he believed she was an SAS spy, a Court heard.Geoffrey Slingsby, 42, appeared at Leeds Crown Court yesterday after he had admitted a charge of wounding with in-tent at an earlier hearing.An alternative charge of attempted murder was dropped by the prosecution. Prosecutor Neil Clark said Slingsby had at-tacked housekeeper Sheila Gal-lagher, 52, on September 7 last year when he was a patient at Lynfield Mount Hospital, Brad-ford. "She left the laundry room into a corridor and he approached her from behind," said Mr Clark."He put her in what she describes as a bear hug. It seems to have been a bear hug around the neck rather than the chest. Then he attempted to strangle her. She could feel his grip become tighter and tighter and she fell with him holding her to the floor."Mr Clark described how other members of staff and a patient came to help when they heard the noise, to find the housekeeper on the floor. "The defendant was holding her with one hand by the throat. He was saying that she was a spy and that the controller was telling him to do this," he said. "Later on, while still at the hospital, he told one of the nurses that he would kill Mrs Gallagher if he saw her on the ward. It was the opinion of the people who saw the incident that if this had continued much longer she would not have survived."Mrs Gallagher suffered bruising to her neck, arms and back and a small cut to her index finger. When Slingsby was arrested by police he said that he believed Mrs Gallagher was a SAS spy, said Mr Clark. "He said there were spies everywhere and someone called the controller who was telling him what to do. He said he did not want to kill her but it probably would have happened if he had not been dragged off."Mr Clark told the court that Slingsby, who had worked at printing firm Hart & Clough Ltd in Cleckheaton, had a history of psychiatric prob-lems and had been treated by various medical agencies since 1994. He was admitted to Lyn-field Mount last September af-ter he had reduced his medica-tion and workmates noticed strange behaviour. The Re-corder of Leeds, Judge Norman Jones QC, adjourned sentenc-ing until later today to obtain a hospital report.