Triple Nottingham killer thought voices in his head were 'punishment by the government' for Covid lockdown breach’
Valdo Calocane fatally stabbed students Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar and caretaker Ian Coates in June 2023
Paranoid schizophrenic Valdo Calocane thought the voices he heard in his head before he killed three people were a punishment for breaching Covid-19 lockdown rules, an inquiry has heard.
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The former mechanical engineering student stopped taking his antipsychotic medication because he believed thoughts were being inserted into his mind.
Calocane was sectioned four times before he stabbed to death University of Nottingham undergraduates Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar, both 19, and grandfather Ian Coates, 65, in the early hours of June 13 2023,
He then tried to murder three pedestrians with a van in the city.
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Calocane had been under the care of Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust for two years, during which time a consultant psychiatrist warned that he would end up killing someone.
An inquiry into the deaths has been ongoing since February, and today heard from Dr Austin Nwawueze, who was involved in Calocane's care during his time at the mental health facility Victoria House in Darlington, Durham, in 2021.
Another doctor’s report, shown to the inquiry, said: "Valdo believes that he is subject to harassment by the Government through interference with his mind by inserting thoughts there which are not his, and by transmitting voice’ to his head that run a commentary on his actions and abilities, and are generally unpleasant.
"Valdo believes that this harassment is done as a punishment for him breaking the lockdown rules.
"Valdo indicates he has done research on the matter and does not believe that these experiences are contributable to mental illness, hence he stopped taking his antipsychotic medication."
Counsel to the inquiry Lance Baynham asked Dr Nwawueze whether it is an issue for a psychotic patient to be conducting research that "might have the effect of appearing to validate those delusional beliefs".
The doctor, whose only direct involvement with Calocane was during a ward round on September 28 2021, said: "If he did conduct the research, then he might be trying to prove the points to say, 'I’m not psychotic, I don’t need to take medication'."
He later added: "The patient’s unwell and a lot of the things they tell you, most times, are not founded on truth.“So usually he says the NHS is putting things in his mind.
"That’s not founded on truth.“So in that sense, if he said he was doing research I would assume that that’s probably tied to the fact that he’s unwell and it’s a delusion in itself."
Calocane, who admitted manslaughter and three counts of attempted murder, was detained indefinitely in a high-security hospital in January 2024 after prosecutors accepted his not guilty pleas to murder.
The inquiry, taking place in London, was told earlier this week that Calocane was discharged from mental health services to his GP just months before the killings because healthcare workers could not find him.
In September 2022, Calocane was discharged by the trust’s Early Intervention in Psychosis (EIP) service because he failed to turn up for appointments or make contact with the team.
Emma Robinson, who was a team leader at the trust, told the inquiry, which is looking into events leading up to the attacks, on Tuesday that Calocane’s care co-ordinator Gary Carter had attended his address, made calls to him and sent a letter, which went unanswered.
The inquiry continues.