A three-year-old boy, Taiwo Abubakar, has been reportedly starved to death by his Nigerian mother, identified as Olabisi Abubakar in Cardiff, United Kingdom.
According to reports, the 42-year-old mother, who is in court for two counts of manslaughter and child cruelty, is accused of killing her three-year-old son through religious fasting.
She reportedly told police officials that she had “locked herself away” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Prosecutors told the Crown Court of Cardiff that the police had to forcefully gain entrance into Abubakar’s residence in the Cathays area on June 29, 2020, adding that she was thin, malnourished and dehydrated when she was found. At the time, she was said to have placed her baby by her side on a sofa bed.
Cardiff Crown Court heard Taiwo weighed 9.8 kilos (22 pounds), with pathologist Dr Stephen Leadbetter finding his death was caused by malnutrition and dehydration.
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The police also informed the court that the woman had been detained in a hospital where she was receiving medical treatment for paranoid schizophrenia.
According to the prosecutor, Peter Donnison, Olabisi was deemed fit for police interview in October 2020 and was interviewed by officers on eight occasions.
Olabisi was said to have told the police that she had fallen asleep on June 26, with the belief she was in heaven before she was brought back to life when they arrived in the company of her neighbour.
“Olabisi Abubakar said she couldn’t explain what happened to her. She was asleep on the bed and that is what she remembered last. She said she believed she was being punished by God,” said Donnison
Doctors found Olabisi was suffering delusions and she was sectioned under the Mental Health Act 1983 on June 30 2020, with detention in hospital still ongoing for her to receive treatment.
The jury has been told it is not disputed that Olabisi, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and moved to London in 2011, neglected her son but the issue is her state of mind at the time.
If the court finds that she was mentally ill at the time, she could be freed and allowed to go home upon the conclusion of the case.