Nottingham: 'Hero' student Grace O'Malley-Kumar died protecting friend from killer

A student was killed while "heroically" trying to protect her friend when he was stabbed as they walked home from a night out in Nottingham.

Grace O'Malley-Kumar, 19, showed "incredible bravery" trying to defend Barnaby Webber from Valdo Calocane when he attacked them, a court heard.

His pleas of manslaughter on the basis of diminished responsibility were accepted at court on Tuesday.

Ms O'Malley-Kumar fought with Calocane before he turned on her.

Her family said they were proud of her.

Addressing Calocane in court, Dr Sanjoy Kumar praised his daughter as a hero who shunned the opportunity to run away.

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.

"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."

The court heard the University of Nottingham students Mr Webber, 19, and Ms O'Malley-Kumar, were walking home to their student accommodation after an end-of-term night-out when they were fatally stabbed in Ilkeston Road just after 04:00 BST on 13 June.

Prosecutor Karim Khalil KC said Mr Webber had been stabbed "repeatedly" with a dagger, inflicting "grave injuries" and causing him to fall to the floor.

Ms O'Malley-Kumar showed "incredible bravery" and tried to protect her friend, fighting and pushing Calocane, 32, into the road, but the killer then turned his attention to her and was "as uncompromisingly brutal in his assault", he added.

Family members in the public gallery sobbed as Mr Khalil told the court Ms O'Malley-Kumar's injuries were too severe and she collapsed as Mr Webber tried to defend himself from the ground, kicking out at his attacker, before Calocane "calmly" walked away.

Ms O'Malley Kumar's brother James said: "She was the best to me. Since everything happened, I've been lost without her.

"I've not just lost my older sister, but my best friend - someone I'd go to about everything. I was so proud, I would always speak about her.

"It's a joy to be able to say she's my older sister, it's a privilege. Now my job is to do my best to make her proud."

The court was told Calocane made his way from the scene of the double killing to a residential hostel in Mapperley Road, where he arrived at about 05:00.

At 05:04, he tried to gain access to the premises through ground-floor windows, but "retreated" after being confronted by an occupant who punched him in the face.

School caretaker Ian Coates, who was driving his Vauxhall van in nearby Magdala Road, was repeatedly stabbed, suffering wounds to his abdomen and chest, at about 05:14.

Mr Khalil told the court: "The defendant then took Ian Coates' van, leaving him for dead."

Mr Coates, 65, was discovered by members of the public shortly after 05:30, found to be unresponsive and was pronounced dead shortly after paramedics and police arrived.

Prosecutors accepted a plea of manslaughter from Calocane on the basis of diminished responsibility after he denied murder charges in November.

Calocane was suffering "serious" mental illness, the hearing was told.

Mr Khalil said the families of the victims had been consulted before the prosecution decided to accept the pleas entered.

However, Dr Kumar, said his daughter would be disappointed with the way the case had concluded.

Calocane, who answered to the name Adam Mendes in court, also admitted attempting to murder three pedestrians he hit with a van.

He had stolen the vehicle from Mr Coates, who he stabbed after attacking the two students.

The court also heard, after taking Mr Coates's van, Calocane drove it to Milton Street, where he hit Wayne Birkett, who was crossing the road. He suffered a fractured skull which caused a bleed to his brain and was said to be extremely fortunate to survive.

The defendant then drove in a loop and was seen by a marked police car at about 05:29.

Officers activated their lights but Calocane accelerated away and then knocked down Sharon Miller and Marcin Gawronski, who were walking to work across a pedestrian central reservation.

Ms Miller and Mr Gawronski were also both extremely fortunate to survive, the court heard.

Calocane was arrested after being Tasered about five minutes after the final victims were injured. He produced a knife when the van was stopped and boxed in by police vehicles.

Mr Khalil said that three psychiatrists had assessed Calocane, concluding that despite suffering paranoid schizophrenia, he would have understood the nature of his conduct in attacking three of his victims with a dagger described in court as "a double-edged fighting knife".

The prosecutor said the victims' families had been consulted and it was decided that it would be appropriate to accept the pleas to manslaughter on the basis of diminished responsibility.

He added: "For the avoidance of any possible doubt, it is the Crown's position that the appalling facts of this case render it to be one of the utmost seriousness."

Calocane's barrister Peter Joyce KC told a previous hearing the defendant "does not dispute the physical facts of the prosecution's case" but was suffering from "extreme" mental illness at the time of the incident.

He now faces a sentencing hearing expected to last for about two days.

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