A man who killed his father and stabbed his two-year-old baby nephew and 11-year-old niece after a family meal at their home in London’s East End has been sentenced to a mental hospital detention order without time limit.
Suluk Ahmed, 32, was found guilty at the Old Bailey of involuntary manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility.
He had been struggling with mental health in the months leading up to the killing in Bethnal Green on a summer’s evening last year.
An ambulance crew answering a 999 call from his 13-year-old nephew arrived at a house at the end of Huddleston Close, a cul-de-sac off Parmiter Street, found the 79-year-old grandfather dying and his two grandchildren bleeding—all from knife wounds.
Police were called and Ahmed was arrested as the children were being treated by paramedics in the house before being taken to hospital with their grandfather.
Ahmed had been at the family home for a meal with his parents, two sisters and young niece and nephews, the court heard.
But he left the dining room after the meal, took a knife from the kitchen—then slipped upstairs to his father Jamir’s bedroom and suddenly lunged at him, stabbing him in the chest.
He then burst into the next room where he stabbed his 11-year-old niece and two-year-old nephew—before turning the knife on himself.
His other nephew aged 13 who was also in the room reacted instinctively and tried to stop his uncle as other family members joined in to grab the knife.
The youngster managed to get to the phone and call the emergency services as the family continued grappling with Ahmed.
Jamir was found by the paramedics with a deep stab to the chest was rushed to the Royal London Hospital at Whitechapel, but died four hours later from a single wound.
“This is an extremely tragic case,” Det Chief Insp Andrew Packer said. “Suluk Ahmed lost control of his senses, killing his father and leaving his niece and nephew with serious injuries.
“Fortunately the children made a full recovery. But incident has had an enormous emotional impact on the family who will never come to terms with Ahmed’s actions that day.
“The psychiatric evidence in court clearly demonstrated Ahmed was suffering from severe mental illness and didn’t understand the gravity of his actions.”
The little nephew and niece Ahmed stabbed were also treated in the hospital, but made a full recovery.
Ahmed was cleared of premeditated murder and attempted murder by reason of insanity, but was given a hospital order with an indefinite time limit.
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