‘All I can do to be close to my sister is sleep with her T-shirt on my pillow’
The families of the three people who died in the Nottingham attacks have spoken to the court of their contempt towards the killer Valdo Calocane. The son of Ian Coates told Calocane to kill himself, while the father of teenage student Grace O’malley-kumar said he had “brought violence to our shores” and targeted the weakest members of society.
James Coates, Ian’s son
James Coates stared at Calocane in the court and said: “You claim the voices told you to kill these innocent people but listen to me… Kill yourself.”
A brief applause broke out from some in the room, prompting the judge to issue a warning to those watching.
James said his father had been killed five months before his retirement in a “murder spree”.
He added: “A selfish monster decided to go on a spree killing and take three lives and attempt to take more.”
Dr Sanjoy Kumar, Grace’s father
Dr Kumar said that Calocane’s contribution to society had been “violence”.
He added: “It is clear to see you planned your attack. You brought multiple knives. You picked children to attack – our children.
“And then you went on to attack an elderly man. The weakest members of society were your targets.”
He accused his daughter’s killer of deceiving psychiatrists with a story he “concocted” months after the killings.
“It is my regret that psychiatrists did not interview you face to face and get accounts from people who saw you on the day if they had seen you they would have seen you were of sound mind.”
He added: “You are a deceptive individual, you have deceived psychiatrists who have based their opinion on partial diagnosis and reports.”
He said that Calocane had a history of violence, and referencing his arrest for assaulting an emergency worker in September 2021, he added: “Including offences which you were unfortunately not charged with formally. Another missed opportunity which may have altered your course.”
He continued: “You brought violence to our shores and to our doors.”
Dr Kumar said he “respected the court” but requested an example made of Calocane.
He added: “In our case this will only happen if this despicable and violent person is removed from society altogether and forever.”
Speaking of Grace’s attempt to save her friend, he said: “She bravely intervened.
“She would never leave a friend in adversity. It was not in her nature. She heroically and valiantly fought you. Like a hero she put herself in harm’s way.”
He then told Calocane: “But unfortunately because of the weapon you carried she stood no chance.
“You showed yourself to be a cold, cowardly and calculating killer. You casually walked away, leaving my child lying in the street.”
Sinead O’malley, Grace’s mother
Ms O’malley, a consultant anaesthetist, who has worked for the NHS for nearly 30 years, said that thoughts of how her daughter was “butchered” by Calocane had left her unable to return to the operating theatre.
She added: “The intrusive images of what happened to my baby plague haunt and paralyse me.”
She said her daughter was “brave beyond words”, adding: “My daily life is consumed with her loss and full of tears. I am dizzy with grief, I have been to the darkest corners of my mind.
“The revolting cowardice of the defendant compared to the heroism of our Gracie is incomparable.
“I’m so proud of the person she was. She was a wonderful friend.”
Addressing Calocane, she said: “You are duplicitous and manipulative as a matter of record.
“You have shown no remorse, you are a carrier of lethal weapons, you knew right from wrong that night.
“You have violence in your soul and the fact you have no convictions is irrelevant as you killed my daughter while on warrant for violent offences.”
James Kumar, Grace’s younger brother
James Kumar said: “To have the audacity to casually strut away speaks volumes about you. If you call yourself anything close to a man you are a fool.” He added: “People ask why does violence exist in society and there is a simple answer – violence exists because of monsters like you ... It haunts me to know her last moments were spent in fear and trying to fight you.
“All I can do to be close to her is to go to sleep with her University of Nottingham T-shirt on my pillow and that is the closest I will be to her.”
Emma Webber, Barnaby ’s mother
In her victim impact statement, Mrs Webber asked that prosecutors move out of her line of sight so she could stare directly at Calocane as she spoke.
She said that all she wanted was to hear her son’s voice.
She said she regularly wakes up at 4.04am, the “last moment her son was alive on this earth before he was murdered by the monster who sits in this very court today”.
Addressing Calocane directly, she said: “Do not fear for a single moment that I have anything but utter rage and pure hatred in my heart for you, the murderer who sits before me.”
David Webber, Barnaby’s father
Mr Webber said Calocane’s actions were “not repairable in this or any lifetime”. He said he had to “steel himself ” to get up and survive without his “beautiful baby boy”.
He added: “My last memory was seeing him in hospital. No parent should ever see this and the image will never leave me. It is imprinted in my mind forever.
“The waves of pain are sometimes crippling knowing I will never be able to walk in, sit on the end of his bed and talk about cars and sport and anything else.” He continued: “I told [Barnaby] I would fight until my last breath to get justice for him.”
Concluding his statement, he said to Calocane: “My final comment to you is I believe in karma and what goes around comes around. I hope you get all you deserve for the rest of your life.”