A man accused of cooking his wife in three pans simmering on the stovetop in their Oceanside home last November, was too sick to make his court appearance this morning, according to his attorney.

“Mr. Hengl was admitted to the hospital on Saturday, he is at Tri-City Hospital,” his attorney Debbie Kirkwood said in a statement today. The public defender stated that Frederick Joseph Hengl was brought to hospital with severe pain in his leg and hip on March 30, 2013. “He has a serious physical illness which will require treatment, I am not at liberty to disclose the nature of his illness at this time.”

In November 2012, neighbors complained of a terrible smell coming from a home in the 400 block of Ditmar Street in Oceanside. Police who responded said that parts of Anna-Maria Faris, 73, were being cooked on the stovetop. Other parts of the woman were in the bathroom, and her head was found in the freezer, according to a prosecutor. The elderly woman reportedly had not been seen in the neighborhood for more than a week.

“Mr. Hengl denies killing his wife,” his attorney stated today. “He has been very depressed since his wife died. They were married for 34 years, she was the love of his life. She had advanced Alzheimers, he quit his job in February 2012 to devote all his time to taking care of her.”

There is another hearing set for Hengl later this week, in San Diego’s North County Superior Courthouse, but his attorney predicts, “I don’t believe he will be well enough to attend the hearing.”

“Currently we don’t know when he will be well enough to attend a court hearing,” attorney Kirkwood said today.

Frederick Joseph Hengl, 68, has been charged with murder and cruelty to elder and unlawful act with human remains. He pleads not guilty to all charges, and is held in lieu of $5 million bail.

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