'Violent and controlling' man guilty of murdering ex-partner's one-year-old daughter

28 March 2022, 16:57 | Updated: 28 March 2022, 17:02

A "controlling and violent" man has been found guilty of murdering his former partner's 16-month-old daughter in east London.

Syed Mohammed Kamran Haider, 40, was found guilty of murder and child cruelty at the Old Bailey on Monday, after fatally injuring Nusayba Bint-Umar in September 2019 in their home in Ilford.

The court found Haider inflicted a traumatic head injury on September 13 - the method of which is not known - and the one-year-old died in hospital four days later.

Nusayba's mother said she would "never forget" the events that led to her daughter's death and said the "things she suffered and that noise she made on the last day of her life will haunt me forever".

"I will never get to hold her again or kiss her tiny hands, tickle her, put her in a pretty dress or buy her a toy that I know she wants, all of the most benign and underrated things that most take for granted as parents," she said in a victim statement.

"These have been taken from me and cannot be given back."

She added: "I will never get to see her grow up, hear her first full sentence, see her first day at school, her first tooth loss, her first proper tantrum and all of the other beautiful milestones that a mother witnesses throughout her children's lives."

She said Nusayba was "subjected to the most horrible experiences at the hands of this man towards the end of her life".

"I will never forget the events that led to her death for as long as I live," she said.

"I vividly remember the things she suffered and that noise she made on the last day of her life will haunt me forever."

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Haider and Nusayba's mother began a relationship in August 2019 after meeting on a dating website.

Mother and daughter quickly moved in with Haider with the promise of financial reward for helping him rear puppies.

But the court found the relationship was marred with episodes of domestic violence and threats towards Nusayba's mother.

On August 28 2019 the 16-month-old was left in Haider's care while her mother went to an appointment.

While she was out she received a call from Haider saying her daughter had hurt herself.

She returned and found Nusayba with a serious head injury.

She tried to call an ambulance but Haider refused and said she should instead collect a baby pen to put Nusayba in, to stop her from walking around.

In the end a taxi was called and Nusayba and her mother went to an east London hospital.

She was discharged the following day and her mother "tried in vain" to arrange alternative accommodation, according to police.

Just over two weeks later, on September 13, all three were at the property in Colinton Road, Ilford, when Nusayba started to cry upstairs.

Nusayba's mother heard Haider shush her, followed by a slapping sound.

Haider then brought her downstairs where her mother cared for her but grew increasingly concerned, before leaving the property and calling an ambulance from a bus stop.

Nusayba was rushed to hospital and transferred to a specialist centre in central London.

Haider was arrested on suspicion of GBH but released on bail, and then released under investigation.

Nusayba remained critically ill in hospital and died four days later on September 17.

A post-mortem showed she died of a traumatic head injury, thought to have been inflicted by Haider on September 13.

He was charged in September 2020 and remanded in custody after appearing at Barkingside Magistrates' Court in December.

Detective Chief Inspector Larry Smith, who led the investigation said: "Haider is a controlling and violent man who is prone to bouts of extreme aggression and violence. Nusayba bore the brunt of that violence on the day she was entrusted in Haider's care and she suffered an attack that would lead to the end of her life.

"What happened on 13 September has never been fully established. But it is beyond doubt that the injuries inflicted on her could not have been accidental and were caused by Haider.

"Nusayba’s mother and family will grieve for many, many years as a result of this harrowing case. We will continue to support her however we can."

Haider will be sentenced on Wednesday.