Stepdad given life sentence for murder of little girl 'facing justice he deserves', say NSPCC

The girl, Nadia Zofia Kalinowska, died in December 2019.

She had been discovered at her family home on Fernagh Drive in Newtownabbey with head and abdominal injuries, including multiple fractures described as being at various stages of healing, and later died.

Prosecutors had in 2020 likened her injuries to those resulting from a road traffic collision.

A murder trial was told this week she had been tortured and killed.

Her stepfather, Abdul Wahab, pleaded guilty to her murder at Belfast Crown Court yesterday – and to a string of assaults on the little girl carried out over a period of several months.

Her mother, 28-year-old Aleksandra Wahab, has also admitted allowing the death of a child and allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm.

Following the guilty pleas yesterday, the jury was discharged.

Mrs Wahab was remanded back into custody to await sentencing.

Mr Wahab’s life sentence has been welcomed by the NSPCC.

A spokesperson for the child protection charity said: “Nadia Zofia Kalinowska died at the hands of her stepfather, who was supposed to nurture and protect her, after he subjected her to a sustained campaign of abuse during her short life.

“Abdul Wahab is now facing the justice he deserves, but today’s conviction will offer little solace to anyone who loved and cared for Nadia.”