A CASUALTY nurse tried to poison his housemates when they fell out over the cleaning rota.

Andrew Percy has been suspended from his job at Newcastle General Hospital's accident and emergency department and has been told he is facing jail for putting bleach in his former friends' milk.

Victoria Ege and Hannah Verinder made cups of tea and cereal with the poisoned milk at their rented house in Newcastle.

They alerted police over the incident and Percy was arres- ted at his parents' home in Amble, Northumberland.

Percy, 22, of Roxburgh Place, Heaton, Newcastle, has refused to talk about the incident.

Miss Ege, also 22, a shop assistant at H&M, Newcastle, and trainee solicitor Ms Verinder, 24, still share the five-bedroomed house in Chester Street, Sandyford, Newcastle.

The housemates said Percy had not been pulling his weight around the house and neglected his cleaning duties.

Tensions built up and Percy took revenge after a heated confrontation.

He grabbed a bottle of Flash and squirted it into a carton of soya milk and a bottle of semi-skimmed milk.

Miss Ege came home late with friends and decided to make tea.

She had a sip, but immediately spat it out, saying it tasted peculiar.

Percy pleaded guilty at a hearing at Newcastle Crown Court to two charges of administering a poison or noxious substance with intent to injure or aggrieve.

The offences are said to have taken place on November 20.

Brian Mark, in mitigation, told the court: "The defendant is suspended from work. He is a nurse.

"There is a background to this case -it is an odd case.

"I am confident he does not pose any danger whatever.

"However, it is right the court hears that from a psychiatrist in an assessment."

Judge Tony Lancaster adjourned the case until May for reports and remanded Percy on bail.

Judge Lancaster told him: "You must appreciate these are serious offences and the court is bound to consider custody as one of the options available."

Speaking after the hearing, Ms Verinder said: "He regarded himself as a medical expert and told the police he knew exactly how much bleach to put in -just enough to harm us, but not kill us."

A spokeswoman for Newcastle NHS Trust said: "He was a member of trust staff and joined in July last year.

"As soon as the trust became aware of the serious nature of the allegations, our internal investigation commenced. It is still in progress."