British-Sikh couple killed by son in 2020 could have been saved: Report

LONDON: A Sikh couple murdered by their “knife-obsessed” son in the UK in 2020 could have been saved if the agencies involved with the family before the crime had rightfully addressed their concerns, a homicide review report said.

Anmol Chana, then 25, stabbed his mother Jasbir Kaur, 52, and step father Rupinder Bassan, 51, more than 20 times at their home in Oldbury, West Midlands, in February 2020. He was sentenced to life in prison at the Birmingham Crown Court, with a minimum of 36 years in jail.

The report, published this month by the Safer Sandwell Partnership, revealed how Chana had been a “constant threat” to his mother and had made a number of “threats to kill”, the Birmingham Live reported. The family had been “seeking support” and “felt in danger” but their concerns “went unaddressed”.

Jasbir Kaur was accused of poor parenting and “labelled weak” despite making several cries for help about her violent and dangerous son. The report said: “The review recognised significant victim blaming by professionals in their response. Far from being ‘weak’ (a term used repeatedly to describe her parenting) she had shown incredible strength.”

It further said that Chana was “obsessed” with weapons and had warned he would kill his mother. From an early age, he was potentially twisted and dangerous, and talked about his “interest in death, hurting people or animals”, the report noted.

He been known to social services, GPs and mental health teams since childhood over his weird and violent behaviour. “It is clear from the report that, over many years of agencies’ involvement with the perpetrator, more could have been done to address his violent behaviour and poor mental health, while also providing better support to his mother and sister who lived with ongoing fear and anxiety about what he would do next,” Chief Superintendent Maria Fox, chair of the Safer Sandwell Partnership, was quoted as saying in Birmingham Live.

After killing his parents, Chana stole money from the house and bought a ticket to flee the country, but was nabbed by the police. He had claimed before the Birmingham Crown Court that he killed his parents in self-defence but his story was dismissed as “fantasy” by the prosecutors, and jurors concluded he was lying.