Mother who killed child locked up indefinitely
THE Birmingham mother who stabbed her three-year-old daughter to death then doused her in acid has been detained indefinitely.
Iman Omar Yousef, 32, from Milverton Road, Erdington, was a paranoid schizophrenic who heard voices in her head when she killed Alia Jama, Worcester Crown Court was told.
Although she was a loving mother, the voices told her it “would be in Alia’s interests” and that she would be “safe in death.”
Yousef, who appeared via video link from a secure mental health unit, pleaded guilty to the 2010 manslaughter of Alia on the grounds of diminished responsibility.
She wiped away tears as a judge outlined details of the attack, which she said was entirely a result of mental illness.
She had been detained under the Mental Health Act since her arrest and the judge ruled that she will continue to be detained indefinitely in order to protect the public.
The court heard Yousef had been a “loving and over-protective mother” but her mental state had deteriorated since 2001. Alia’s body was discovered by police in the bedroom of the family home in February 2010. She had been stabbed repeatedly and doused in acid.
Prosecutor Robert Price said Alia, who was partially wrapped in bin liners, had suffered dozens of stab injuries to her front and back. There were no defensive wounds and a highly corrosive substance had been used on her body when she was either unconscious or already dead.
Yousef later told medics that she had given her daughter milk before putting her to bed but voices told her she needed to kill her to protect her.
Mrs Justice Carr QC told Yousef: “Your offending is directly and wholly attributable to your paranoid schizophrenia.
“There is no indication that you did anything other than love your daughter and, at the time, killing her, you believed that you were protecting her. In this context, there is no need for any punishment.
“You need long-term mental health treatment and supervision.”