punched her 3-year-old son until he died in an
attack that 'simply beggars belief'. Rosdeep
Adekoya, 34, has been jailed for 11 years for killing
her son Mikaeel Kular, who she savagely beat
then left to die for two days during a family holiday
in January.
After discovering his lifeless body on the floor of
their Edinburgh home in Ferry Gait Crescent, she
wrapped it in a duvet cover, put it in the suitcase
and drove to Kirkcaldy, Fife, to hide it in woodland.
Adekoya reported Mikaeel missing to police after
stashing his body in remote woodland, sparking a
major two-day search operation involving
hundreds of local people and nation-wide
coverage.
Now a prisoner at Cornton
Vale jail near Stirling,
she was initially charged with murder but last
month pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of
culpable homicide.
She also admitted a charge of attempting to defeat
the ends of justice by pretending to police her son
had gone missing.
Passing sentence, judge Lord Glennie said a
custodial sentence was inevitable in such a case
and referred to the Crown acceptance that
Adekoya had no intention to kill Mikaeel.
But he went on: 'Nevertheless, what you did was
cruel and inexcusable.
'Striking a child even once is bad enough. Striking
him heavily and repeatedly with hand and fist
when he was being sick again and again simply
beggars belief.
'Mikaeel was by all accounts a healthy, happy little
boy. By your actions, however unintended, you
have not only robbed Mikaeel of his young life but
left a gaping hole in the lives of all who loved him.'
The judge, who heard a plea for a significant
discount to the sentence from Adekoya's defence
QC, said it is not clear precisely what triggered the
events leading to Mikaeel's death.
Referring to the beatings the youngster received at
the hands of his mother, Lord Glennie told
Adekoya her son was in severe pain shortly
before he died.
But he said she was 'not even aware that death
was a possibility until it happened'.
The judge said he accepted that Adekoya's
remorse is 'genuine and heartfelt'.
'You are clearly an intelligent and articulate young
woman,' he told her.
'There is no history of violence by you towards
any of your children. That makes it all the more
difficult to understand your actions. I do not
suppose that you really understand why you did
what you did.'
Reports prepared for the case found that Adekoya
suffered from depression for some time,
particularly in the last few months before
Mikaeel's death, as the single mother found
herself 'overwhelmed' by her circumstances.
'It is clear that the normal bond between mother
and child simply failed to develop between you and
Mikaeel, though it clearly developed with the other
children,' Lord Glennie added.
The judge also pointed to the large search for
Mikaeel, involving the police, fire service,
coastguard, mountain rescue teams, air support
and hundreds of members of the public.
He said: 'By your pretence that Mikaeel had gone
missing you caused a massive manhunt to be
undertaken, involving both the emergency
services and the public. I accept that this was not
planned and that you simply panicked when you
realised that Mikaeel was dead. But this too... is a
serious matter.'
She was jailed for 11 years when she returned to
the High Court in Edinburgh for sentencing today.
The court heard that Mikaeel died on the night of
Tuesday January 14 from injuries inflicted the
previous Sunday.
His mother 'lost her temper' when he was
repeatedly sick following a trip to a Nando's
restaurant at the city's Fountain Park.
She smacked him and struck him on the body and
head with a clenched fist, the court heard
previously.
When Mikaeel was sick for a third time, she
dragged him to the shower by his arms and 'beat
him heavily' on his back as he lay over the bath
edge.
Over the next few days Mikaeel's condition
worsened and he was kept off nursery.
He was assaulted again on the Monday after being
sick and became 'listless', but his mother did not
take him to a doctor because of the bruising.
By Tuesday night, Mikaeel was said to be 'quiet'
and was giving a 'limited' response to his mother's
questions.
Shockingly, it has emerged she trawled the
internet with searches such as 'I find it hard to
love my son' and 'get rid of bruises' in the months
leading up to his death.
Advocate depute Alex Prentice, prosecuting, told
the court: 'He would have been in significant pain
but was put to bed.
'The pain would have increased significantly while
Mikaeel became dangerously ill and finally dying
as a result of the injuries inflicted upon him by the
accused.'
After discovering her son's body, Adekoya put it in
a suitcase which she carried to the boot of her
car, before taking his twin sister to nursery.
She left the case in woodland behind her sister's
house in Dunvegan Avenue, Kirkcaldy, covering it
with branches.
But mobile telephone masts recorded the 34-year-
old's journey across the Forth Road Bridge,
undermining her statements to police about her
whereabouts.
She eventually broke down and took officers to his
body.
The final cause of Mikaeel's death was found to be
'blunt force abdominal trauma' and the court heard
he had more than 40 separate injuries to his body.
Culled from UK Daily Mail
0 comments:
Post a Comment