A judge has blasted a mother who repeatedly
punched her 3-year-old son until he died in an
attack that 'simply beggars belief'. Rosdeep
Adekoya, 34, has been jailed for 11 years for
killing her son Mikaeel Kular, who she savagely
beat then left to die for two days during a family
holiday in January.
After discovering his lifeless body on the floor of
their Edinburgh home in Ferry Gait Crescent, she
wrapped it in a duvet cover, put it in the
suitcase and drove to Kirkcaldy, Fife, to hide it
in woodland.
Adekoya reported Mikaeel missing to police
after stashing his body in remote woodland,
sparking a major two-day search operation
involving hundreds of local people and nation-
wide coverage.
Now a prisoner at Cornton Vale jail near Stirling,
she was initially charged with murder but last
month pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of
culpable homicide.
She also admitted a charge of attempting to
defeat the ends of justice by pretending to
police her son had gone missing.
Passing sentence, judge Lord Glennie said a
custodial sentence was inevitable in such a
case and referred to the Crown acceptance that
Adekoya had no intention to kill Mikaeel.
But he went on: 'Nevertheless, what you did was
cruel and inexcusable.
'Striking a child even once is bad enough.
Striking him heavily and repeatedly with hand
and fist when he was being sick again and
again simply beggars belief.
'Mikaeel was by all accounts a healthy, happy
little boy. By your actions, however unintended,
you have not only robbed Mikaeel of his young
life but left a gaping hole in the lives of all who
loved him.'
The judge, who heard a plea for a significant
discount to the sentence from Adekoya's
defence QC, said it is not clear precisely what
triggered the events leading to Mikaeel's death.
Referring to the beatings the youngster received
at the hands of his mother, Lord Glennie told
Adekoya her son was in severe pain shortly
before he died.
But he said she was 'not even aware that death
was a possibility until it happened'.
The judge said he accepted that Adekoya's
remorse is 'genuine and heartfelt'.
'You are clearly an intelligent and articulate
young woman,' he told her.
'There is no history of violence by you towards
any of your children. That makes it all the more
difficult to understand your actions. I do not
suppose that you really understand you did
what you did.
Reports prepared for the case found that
Adekoya suffered from depression for some
time, particularly in the last few months before
Mikaeel's death, as the single mother found
herself 'overwhelmed' by her circumstances.
'It is clear that the normal bond between mother
and child simply failed to develop between you
and Mikaeel, though it clearly developed with the
other children,' Lord Glennie added.
The judge also pointed to the large search for
Mikaeel, involving the police, fire service,
coastguard, mountain rescue teams, air support
and hundreds of members of the public.
He said: 'By your pretence that Mikaeel had
gone missing you caused a massive manhunt
to be undertaken, involving both the emergency
services and the public. I accept that this was
not planned and that you simply panicked when
you realised that Mikaeel was dead. But this
too... is a serious matter.'
She was jailed for 11 years when she returned
to the High Court in Edinburgh for sentencing
today.
The court heard that Mikaeel died on the night
of Tuesday January 14 from injuries inflicted the
previous Sunday.
His mother 'lost her temper' when he was
repeatedly sick following a trip to a Nando's
restaurant at the city's Fountain Park.
She smacked him and struck him on the body
and head with a clenched fist, the court heard
previously.
When Mikaeel was sick for a third time, she
dragged him to the shower by his arms and
'beat him heavily' on his back as he lay over the
bath edge.
Over the next few days Mikaeel's condition
worsened and he was kept off nursery.
He was assaulted again on the Monday after
being sick and became 'listless', but his mother
did not take him to a doctor because of the
bruising.
By Tuesday night, Mikaeel was said to be 'quiet'
and was giving a 'limited' response to his
mother's questions.
Shockingly, it has emerged she trawled the
internet with searches such as 'I find it hard to
love my son' and 'get rid of bruises' in the
months leading up to his death.
Advocate depute Alex Prentice, prosecuting, told
the court: 'He would have been in significant
pain but was put to bed.
'The pain would have increased significantly
while Mikaeel became dangerously ill and finally
dying as a result of the injuries inflicted upon
him by the accused.'
After discovering her son's body, Adekoya put it
in a suitcase which she carried to the boot of
her car, before taking his twin sister to nursery.
She left the case in woodland behind her sister's
house in Dunvegan Avenue, Kirkcaldy, covering
it with branches.
But mobile telephone masts recorded the 34-
year-old's journey across the Forth Road Bridge,
undermining her statements to police about her
whereabouts.
She eventually broke down and took officers to
his body.
The final cause of Mikaeel's death was found to
be 'blunt force abdominal trauma' and the court
heard he had more than 40 separate injuries to
his body.
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