Nazli Merthoca, 24, was jailed after killing her three-month-old daughter, Kaylani Kalanzi who died after sustaining severe brain injuries, as well as a broken leg and ribs
A mother has been sentenced to nine and a half years in prison after causing the death of her three-month-old daughter. Even before her birth, Kaylani Kalanzi was already under the watchful eye of social services and was included in a child protection plan, as informed to the Old Bailey.
On 8 July 2024, she was rushed to hospital after being violently shaken, with an impact to her head. She sustained severe brain injuries, as well as a broken leg and ribs, and passed away in hospital 15 days later.
Her mother, Nazli Merthoca, stood trial for her death and in October, a jury acquitted her of murder but found her guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter.
Prosecutor Zoe Johnson KC stated that the 24 year old “lost her temper with the baby after an accumulation of factors” and also “challenged” social workers instead of accepting their assistance.
Sentencing her to nine years and six months on Monday, Judge Mark Lucraft KC described the infant’s death as a “loss of a precious life”.
“The impact of the death of Kaylani will be felt by many,” he told Merthoca. You will have to live with the knowledge that you killed your daughter.”
Defence counsel Benjamin Aina KC informed the Old Bailey that his client had faced “a number of significant challenges” in her life, including enduring physical abuse as a child and entering the care system at the age of 12 where she began being “groomed by older men” and developed dependencies on cannabis and alcohol.
He also spoke of her “grief” over Kaylani. Merthoca’s partner, Herbert Kalanzi, 35, was also on trial, accused of causing or allowing Kaylani’s death, but was acquitted by the jury.
He had been formally cleared of her murder on the judge’s orders. The pair, hailing from East Ham, east London, did not testify at their trial. During the proceedings, Ms Johnson informed the jury that Merthoca and Mr Kalanzi were in a “mutually abusive relationship”.
Kaylani, born prematurely, spent 29 days in the special care baby unit at North Middlesex Hospital before being discharged home on 13 May 2024.
Social services were involved with the family and granted the defendants custody of Kaylani after they proved themselves to be capable parents, the jury heard.
Mr Kalanzi agreed to participate in Caring Dad, a programme designed to engage fathers in enhancing the safety and wellbeing of their children. However, the prosecution argued that the defendants’ relationship was so fraught that the social services strategy was “doomed to fail”.
Ms Johnson told the jury that on 8 July 2024, the “ever-present risk” to Kaylani turned into a “fatal reality”.
Just before 10.30pm, the defendants rang emergency services from Merthoca’s grandmother’s flat in Homerton, east London, where the family was residing at the time, reporting that Kaylani had stopped breathing.
Upon the paramedics’ arrival, Merthoca failed to disclose that Kaylani had been shaken, resulting in bleeding to the brain, eye damage, and fractures to her tibia and ribs, the court heard.
Employees at Great Ormond Street Hospital observed that Merthoca became distressed when questioned about the incident, alleging she was being targeted due to her “race and gender”.