Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Showing posts with label death. Show all posts

Saturday 30 April 2022

Kingfisher Way mother sentenced following sad death of her 11-month old daughter - Brent Council statement

Following the jailing  of Fartun Jamal of Kinhfisher Way, Brent,  for causing the death of her 11-month old baby, Wembley Matters asked Brent Council if Brent Social Services or Health visitors were involved with the family and whether there would be a Serious Cse Review.

Brent Council responded:

Brent Council is deeply saddened at the death of baby Nafahat due to the lack of appropriate care provided by her mother, who has now been convicted.

 

All agencies involved with the family reviewed their practice within a short period of time following Nafahat’s death in 2019. Brent Council’s social workers had acted appropriately when concerns about the care provided to her were first raised. When the criminal proceedings concluded recently, multi-agency safeguarding partners met to review learning from 2019. All safeguarding partners continue to work together to understand, learn and address the issue of parental neglect in the local area.


Metropolitan Police statement:

A mother has been jailed for causing the death of her 11-month-old baby daughter after she housed her in squalor and failed to seek medical treatment for her when she became ill.

Fartun Jamal, 25 (10.09.96), of Kingfisher Way, Brent, was jailed for five years and six months at Harrow Crown Court on Friday, 29 April.

She was found guilty at the same court on Friday, 4 March of causing the death of Nafahat Diini as well as three counts of child cruelty following a trial.

Detective Chief Inspector Madeline Ryder, the senior investigating officer, said: 

This is an absolutely tragic case that resulted in the needless death of an innocent baby.

The death of a child is an investigation that no police officer ever wishes to undertake. All of the officers and staff who were involved in the investigation have been left deeply affected by it. The investigation team, led by Detective Sergeant John Martin, worked tirelessly to get justice for Nafahat.

No child should ever have to suffer in this manner. Baby Nafahat was only 11 months old when she died in squalid conditions, surrounded by walls covered in faeces. She died of an illness that was very treatable if Jamal had bothered to seek medical attention. What is even more harrowing, is that her GP’s surgery was less than 70 metres away from where she died and could be seen from Nafahat’s bedroom window, so help was within very easy reach.

For the vast majority of parents, to care for, protect and nurture their children is their main priority. However, Jamal was out partying just days before Nafahat’s death and had clearly placed her social life above that of the basic needs of her baby.

There is no sentence long enough to justify the taking of a baby’s life, however I am pleased with the outcome of today’s sentencing. We hope that in some small way, this offers some comfort to Nafahat’s remaining family.

The court heard that police were called on 13 March 2019 by the London Ambulance Service (LAS) who requested assistance to a call made by Jamal stating that her daughter was not breathing.

Officers and the LAS attended and carried out first aid, but despite their best efforts Nafahat was pronounced dead at the scene.

A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as a respiratory tract infection (bronchitis complicated with pneumonia).

Upon opening the front door to the property, the officers commented on a strong smell of urine coming from inside.

In the bedroom where Nafahat was found, there was human faeces smeared on the walls and window. Nafahat’s cot had a broken and collapsed side and contained several blankets and duvets. The cot and bedding were all soaked in urine. The cot itself was a travel cot and was not a suitable bed for a child of Nafahat’s age.

In Jamal’s bedroom, officers found mouse droppings on her mattress and human faeces on the walls.

Several of the rooms contained carrier bags full of dirty nappies and plates of rotting food.

Officers searched the kitchen and found hardly any food. The only items in the fridge were two bottles of milk that were nearly empty. In the broken freezer was a melted carton of ice cream. On the windowsill was a container of cooked and congealed pasta that was being used as an ash tray.

Jamal told officers that she had offered Nafahat formula milk earlier that morning but she had refused it. However, officers found no formula milk in the flat.

There were no photos of Nafahat in the property and no toys were found.

The doctor who pronounced Nafahat dead told officers it was a case of neglect.

Jamal was arrested on suspicion of neglect and answered no comment to all questions. Detectives spent months working around the clock to secure evidence against Jamal and as a result she was charged on 17 December 2020 and convicted as above.


 

Wednesday 2 May 2018

Police asked to probe Brent Tory candidate death rumours

Richard Osley LINK is reporting that Brent Conservatives have asked police to investigate rumours being spread that one of their candidates in tomorrow's council election has died.

Unfortunately this comes after the death of Labour candidate Lesley Jones resulting in a delay in the Willesden Green election.

The Brent Returning Officer has asked election agents to remind candidates that the spreading of false statements about a candidate is an illegal practice. 

In addition alleged malpractice in the filling in of postal votes has been reported to police in Dollis Hill ward.


Friday 30 October 2015

Sudden death of Cllr Dan Filson, Chair of Brent Scrutiny Committee

Dan Filson's Twitter profile
Labour councillors have been expressing their shock on Twitter this evening following the sudden death of Dan Filson, Chair of Brent Scrutiny Committee and a councillor for Kensal Green ward.  Warm tributes have been paid to an independent man who was a real character.  Readers will be familiar with his attempt to sharpen up the role of the Scrutiny Committee when he took over as Chair.

Dan had a combative presence on Twitter so it is fitting that colleagues and friends used the medium to pay tribute:
Cllr Shama Tatler:  There are few people in the world who truly live their principles. @Dan_Filson was a decent, honourable gentleman. RIP comrade@BrentLabour

Cllr Sam Stopp:  .@BrentLabour has lost its most decent and principled councillor with @Dan_Filson 's passing. Totally irreplaceable. We are in shock.

Dawn Butler:  R.I.P Brent's very special Cllr Dan Filson. A lover of fine wine. I will so miss your naughty sense of humour 
Cllr Matthew Kelcher: Terrible news today at the passing of @Dan_Filson - he was a great friend, mentor and comrade and always put #kensalgreen first. Will miss you.
For my part we had many political differences and crossed swords a number of times but shared a commitment to effective scrutiny and transparency. He was always civil when we met personally and good fun to sit next to in the public gallery during council or committee meetings - his dry wit commentary was always entertaining.

He will be missed both politically and personally.

Thursday 27 August 2015

Green Party demands halt Work Capability Assessments immediately following deaths of those deemed 'fit to work'

Green Party work and pensions spokesperson Jonathan Bartley has demanded an ‘immediate halt’ to the government’s Work Capability Assessments for those claiming Employment and Support Allowance, Incapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance.


His call comes in response to figures released today by the Department for Work and Pensions that show 81,140 people claiming ESA, IB or SDA died between December 2011 and February 2014. Of those, 4,010 (4.94%) had been deemed ‘fit for work’ following their WCA.


Meanwhile, of the 50,580 people who died while claiming ESA during the same period, 7,200 (14%) were placed in a work-related activity group designed to help prepare them for work.
 
Bartley said:

There should be an immediate halt to the Work Capability Assessment. It is now clear that tens of thousands have died within a year of being put through it, with thousands of these people placed in work-related activity groups or certified as ‘fit for work’. These decisions are inhumane and this mortality rate is a national scandal.


These tragic statistics expose the fundamental flaw in the government’s approach to the sick and disabled. It is unacceptable that a massive 14% of those who died within a year of their WCA were forced into a work-related activity group, and almost one in 20 were deemed ‘fit for work’, meaning they were forced to spend their final months seeking or preparing for employment.


The government needs to stop treating the sick and disabled as ‘scroungers’ out to rob the state, and instead apply some humanity and provide these people with the care and support they need.” 

Wednesday 10 April 2013

Glenda 'tells it like it was' in magnificent anti-Thatcher speech


Magnificent speech by Glenda Jackson who represents parts of Brent as well as Camden. The  section of her speech on the state of schools and classrooms back then absolutely ring true to my experience as a teacher at the time. Unfortunately schools like Copland are experiencing the same kind of conditions now.

Monday 27 August 2012

Alf Filer's killer jailed for drunk driving

Alf with  students defending  the Harrow Mosque from the EDL in 2009
 The man responsible for the death of Alf Filer,  local activist in Brent, member of Brent Fightback and a lecturer at Harrow College before he moved to Worthing, has been jailed for drunk driving. Alf is greatly missed and often crops up in our conversations. If he was still alive he would be in the forefront of the current battles against cuts and austerity.

Here is the item as carried by the BBC:
A drink-driver has been jailed for six years for killing a man who was standing by his broken down car in East Sussex.

Joseph Lavelle, 36, of Worthing, West Sussex was two-and-a-half times over the drink-drive limit when he hit Alf Filer, 58, on the A27 in Hangleton. 

He was jailed at Lewes Crown Court having admitted death by careless driving under the influence of alcohol.

The painter was also banned from driving for five years, police said. 

Mr Filer, also from Worthing, died at the scene on 23 June last year.

The political activist and former lecturer had only moved into the area from London in the past year.
Sgt Neil Walker, from Sussex Police, said: "This is another tragic example of the way in which drink-driving wrecks lives. This terrible incident has robbed a family and the community of a well-respected and much-loved man."