Nadia Kalinowska murder: Stepdad told he will serve minimum of 22 years over death of five-year-old
"Both defendants maintained throughout the case until close to trial Nadia was injured accidentally. This was clearly a lie.."
Nadia as an infant with stepfather Abdul Wahab
The stepfather and mother of tragic child Nadia Kalinowska have been handed lengthy jail terms today over the five-year-old's harrowing death.
Abdul Wahab, 35, has been told he will serve a minimum of 22 years of a life sentence after being convicted of carrying out a series of serious assaults against his five-year-old stepdaughter before murdering her on December 15, 2019.
Nadia’s mother Aleksandra Wahab, 29, was sentenced to 11 years after admitting causing or allowing the death of her daughter and two counts of causing or allowing Nadia to suffer serious physical harm in the days leading up to her death and in the preceding months.
Read next: Stepdad who murdered Nadia Kalinowska claims they were “like two best friends”
At Belfast Crown Court on Wednesday, Mr Justice O’Hara sentenced Abdul Wahab for repeatedly attacking and beating Nadia, who had suffered more than 70 injuries, including a fractured skull, over many months.
Setting out the background to the case, Mr Justice O’Hara said an ambulance had been called to the Wahab home on December 15, 2019, and the crew found Nadia unconscious. The only other people in the house were Mr and Mrs Wahab and their two-year-old son.
She later died in the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast.
The judge said Nadia had suffered a “horrific collection of injuries”.
This included more than 70 surface injuries and eight rib fractures, which he said could only have been caused by “a significant degree of destructive force”.
She also had a fractured collarbone, fractures of the pelvis, a fractured skull, liver and bowel lacerations and a perforated bowel.
He said these injuries would have been caused by “heavy blunt impacts”.
The judge said prosecution experts had concluded “she was repeatedly assaulted, that these injuries would have caused her obvious pain and distress and any half-observant parent would have known that”.
The judge also said that Mr Wahab now seeks to retract his guilty plea.
He said: “What he admitted to is entirely consistent with the overwhelming evidence against him.
“It is distressing and rather pathetic that he now seeks to disavow his guilty pleas.”
The judge continued: “What Mr Wahab did to Nadia was brutal, merciless and outrageous.
“The contrast with his untouched son, who was then only two years old, is dramatic and shocking.
“I do not believe in any way that Nadia’s injuries relate to her being clumsy or accident prone.
“They are all explained and only explained by a sustained cruelty which his wife knew about and allowed to happen and continue to happen.”
Mr Wahab had already been given an automatic life sentence but was told he could not be considered for release for 22 years.
He was given concurrent sentences for the two GBH offences.
Turning to Mrs Wahab, Mr Justice O’Hara said: “I do not accept for a second that she did not know that Nadia was being repeatedly attacked and beaten by her husband.”
The judge continued: “The unavoidable truth for every parent or adult is that we have an absolute duty to protect children from harm.
“Mrs Wahab brought Nadia into this world but did not do that.
“She completely failed Nadia and for that she must be punished.”
She was sentenced to 11 years, with half to be served in custody.
Speaking after the sentencing PPS Assistant Director and Head of the Serious Crime Unit Ciaran McQuillan said: “This deeply distressing case involved the murder of a helpless and vulnerable child at home where she should have felt safe and secure.
“The evidence gathered by the Police Service of Northern Ireland in a painstaking investigation included the results of a postmortem examination and multiple medical reports that showed that five-year-old Nadia was the victim of gratuitous and sustained violence over a period of time.
"It is difficult to comprehend the level of violence that was inflicted on Nadia. Her injuries included multiple fractured ribs, a fractured pelvis, a fractured forearm and extensive bruising and abrasions.
"The violence eventually resulted in her tragic death in hospital from a fractured skull and severe internal injuries. The medical evidence paints a picture of a shocking catalogue of abuse that culminated in her brutal murder.
Nadia in her Primary One photo
“Both defendants maintained throughout the case until close to trial that Nadia was injured by accident This, the prosecution argued, was clearly a lie given the sheer number and magnitude of the injuries.
“Every murder is abhorrent, but this was an especially sickening and brutal murder of a young child.
"We in the PPS hope the conclusion of this case brings some comfort to Nadia’s wider family circle and all those who loved her as they try to cope with her death.”
A detective has described the murder of Nadia Zofia Kalinowska by her stepfather as the “ultimate betrayal of trust”.
Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Inspector Gina Quinn said Nadia’s extended family in Poland had suffered “unimaginable heartache and pain”.
The detective said: “Nadia, who was a young and innocent child, had been subjected to a campaign of violence by her stepfather, while her mother ignored the very obvious attacks being carried out on her young daughter.
“They failed to ever seek medical treatment for any of her injuries.
“This was the ultimate betrayal of trust by the two people who should have protected, loved and cared for Nadia.”
The extended family of Nadia have said their world has been shattered by her death.
A statement released by the PSNI on behalf of her extended family said: “Nadia was just a child – a child who had her young and innocent life cruelly taken away.
“Our little one was loved and treasured by her family here in Poland.
“We have supported the police investigation over the last traumatic three-and-a-half years, and are truly grateful to everyone for their support.
“We’re still, however, trying to come to terms with what happened to Nadia. And I’m not sure that we ever will.
“To be honest, our worlds have been shattered.
“Nadia will always remain in the heart of her loving grandmother and her closest family in Poland.”
