Sabina Nessa: We were treated differently due to ethnicity, family says

The sister of murdered primary school teacher Sabina Nessa has said if their family was a "normal British white family" they would have received better treatment.

Koci Selamaj was jailed for life for killing Ms Nessa, 28, in a park in south-east London in September 2021.

Her sister, Jebina Yasmin Islam, said they had got no government support.

On Friday she criticised Priti Patel after the home secretary tweeted about Ms Nessa's death.

Ms Islam told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "They've not said nothing. Priti Patel has done a tweet on Friday and I was not happy about it because all of a sudden she's using my sister's name for publicity reasons.

"And to be honest she has no right."

Ms Islam also said newspapers had treated her sister's murder "differently" from the murder of Sarah Everard.

"My sister didn't get as much headlines, I feel, at the start," she said. "Maybe was it down to her ethnicity?

"She didn't get the front pages on some of the papers, and in Sarah Everard's case she did."

Commenting on the treatment of her family, she said: "I think it's just down to our ethnicity, to be honest.

"And I feel like if we were a normal British white family we would have been treated equally, I guess."

After 36-year-old Selamaj was sentenced on Friday, Ms Patel tweeted: "Sabina Nessa lost her life due to the harrowing and callous actions of a man who's rightly now behind bars.

"While I can't possibly know how Sabina's family and friends are feeling, I hope today's sentence brings them a small comfort, knowing this evil monster has faced justice.

"As home secretary, tackling violence against women and girls is central to my Beating Crime Plan and I am doing everything in my power to target perpetrators, protect the public and make our streets safer for everyone."

At the time, Ms Islam responded by saying: "You don't know what we as a family are going through and to be honest you haven't even bothered to ask since the death of my sister.

"Lack of support from yourself and Boris Johnson just shows how 'important' it is to tackle male violence to you guys".

The Home Office said it would not comment.

Selamaj repeatedly hit Ms Nessa over the head with a metal traffic triangle and then strangled her.

He was jailed at the Old Bailey for a minimum term of 36 years.

Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]