The parents of a teenager killed by a paranoid schizophrenic have told Good Morning Britain that their daughter’s body was tested for drugs and alcohol, but her killer was not subjected to similar tests.
Grace O’Malley-Kumar was stabbed alongside fellow University of Nottingham student, Barnaby Webber, and school caretaker, Ian Coates by Valdo Calocane in June last year. Three more people were injured in the attack.
Now the families of the victims have revealed Calocane was not tested for drugs and alcohol on the night of his arrest.
Grace’s mother, Dr. Sinead O’Malley, stated in an interview with GMB “He never had a breathalyser test when operating a van in Nottingham City Centre.
It is unbelievable that a toxicology report was completed for Ian Coates and our kids but not for Valdo Calocane because the latter denied using drugs or alcohol.
As parents, we believe that Calocane must remain in the hospital or in prison indefinitely.
“We would have preferred that he was charged with murder because there were outstanding parts of the investigation which might have negated the opportunity to plead diminished responsibility.”
On Tuesday 23 January, prosecutors accepted his pleas of not guilty to murder and guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to “serious” mental illness.
The victims’ families continue to call for a public inquiry to address the handling of the case.
Dr Sanjoy Kumar, Grace’s father, added, “Not taking drugs and alcohol samples from a driver is absolutely ridiculous!”
“I worry about this person coming out.”
Grace’s grieving parents called it “ridiculous” that their son would have to “keep fighting” in the event that his sister’s killer was freed in the future.
“For the rest our life going forward we will have to write to the Minister of Justice to ensure that doesn’t happen and when we’re gone it’ll be our son.”
In 2019, Calocane received a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia. He had been sectioned four times and had a history of refusing medicine, all of which the prosecution claimed contributed to his mental health’s continued decline.
The NHS trust where he received treatment has now been subject to a review of its mental health services by the health secretary.
In 2021, he attacked a police officer.
“A public investigation is the only way to obtain the facts and people to respond to you. We can only find out what happened in this way.
“It’s for public protection and so that this never happens again to any other family.”
In addition to being well-known to mental health professionals, Calocane had an active arrest warrant after
The government hasn’t responded to calls for a public inquiry.
ITV News Central has approached Nottinghamshire Police for a comment.
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