'Monster' Valdo Calocane sentence 'not unduly lenient'

A mentally ill man who allegedly attacked two people in Kegworth before going on a killing spree in Nottingham will not have his sentence changed, the Court of Appeal has ruled. In June last year Valdo Calocane fatally stabbed two 19-year-old university students before killing a 65-year-old man, stealing his van and ramming it into pedestrians in Nottingham.

Just a few weeks earlier it was reported to Leicestershire Police that he had attacked two co-workers in Kegworth. But he fled before the police arrived and no further action was taken, leading to criticism of the force.

He went on trial and was given an indefinite hospital order for the Nottingham attacks. The relatives of Barnaby Webber, Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Ian Coates have said they “face their own life sentence” of ensuring Calocane is never released after the Court of Appeal ruled his sentence was not unduly lenient.

READ MORE: Paranoid schizophrenic who stabbed strangers months before Nottingham attacks sentenced in Leicester

The families want a public inquiry into the attacks in Nottingham, with the mother of Mr Webber claiming that Calocane should become “the next Ian Brady and Fred West” by never being released from custody. Three senior judges ruled today (Tuesday) that Calocane’s indefinite hospital order was “not arguably unduly lenient”, stating the court could not ignore medical evidence related to Calocane’s paranoid schizophrenia.

The Attorney General referred the sentence to the Court of Appeal in February, with lawyers arguing that Calocane, 32, should have been given a “hybrid” order, where he would be treated in hospital before serving the remainder of the sentence in custody.

Speaking after the ruling, Mr Webber’s mother, Emma Webber, said: “Today’s ruling comes as no surprise to the families of the Nottingham attack victims. It was inevitable and was not a review of anything other than the letter of the law as it stands.

“Despite the fact that the Attorney General herself feels that Valdo Calocane did not receive the appropriate sentence, today’s outcome proves how utterly flawed and under-resourced the criminal justice system in the UK is. It also illustrates the need for urgent reforms in the UK homicide law.

“The fact remains, despite the words of the judge, that almost 90 per cent of people serving hospital orders are out within 10 years and 98 per cent within 20 years. In effect, the families now face their own life sentence of ensuring the monster that is Valdo Calocane becomes the next Ian Brady or Fred West and is never released.

“We have never disputed that he is mentally unwell. However, he knew what he was doing, he knew that it was wrong but he did it anyway. There should be an element of punishment for such a heinous act, alongside appropriate treatment."

Calocane fatally stabbed the university students as they walked home from a night-out in the early hours of June 13 last year, before killing 65-year-old Mr Coates and stealing his van. He then used the vehicle to knock down three pedestrians – Wayne Birkett, Marcin Gawronski and Sharon Miller – in Nottingham city centre before being arrested.

Prosecutors accepted his not guilty pleas to murder at his sentencing at Nottingham Crown Court in January after multiple medical experts concluded he had paranoid schizophrenia.

Sentencing judge Mr Justice Turner told Calocane that his “sickening crimes” meant he would be detained indefinitely in a high-security hospital “very probably for the rest of your life”. He also ruled that Calocane should be subject to further restrictions if ever discharged from hospital, which would need to be approved by the Justice Secretary.