Cardiff: Mother accused of son's death said God took him, court hears

Cardiff Crown Court previously heard Ms Abubakar suffered "delusions" as a result of paranoid schizophrenia

A mother accused of killing her son through religious fasting during lockdown told doctors God had taken the child away, a court has heard.

Olabisi Abubakar, 42, was found "thin, malnourished and dehydrated" alongside her son, Taiwo, in June 2020.

Cardiff Crown Court heard that three-year-old Taiwo weighed just 9.8kg (1st 5lb) and had died of malnutrition and dehydration.

Ms Abubakar denies manslaughter and neglect charges.

She is being treated for paranoid schizophrenia and is appearing at court via video link from hospital.

• Mum killed son, 3, by forcing him to fast - court

• Fasting death accused experienced Jesus delusions

On Monday, consultant forensic psychiatrist Dr Tom Wynne told the trial that when he examined Ms Abubakar, she told him "God had taken Taiwo away."

Dr Wynne said she "did not feel responsible for the death" and "denied trying to harm him."

The court was told the outbreak of Covid and the subsequent lockdown caused a significant deterioration in Ms Abubakar's mental health. She told doctors she heard the voices of God and the Holy Spirit and another voice which she said was "not a good voice".

Prosecutor Mark Heywood KC asked Dr Wynne: "Did this tip the balance of her health?"

Dr Wynne replied: "Yes... It threw her off balance. Her mind was unsettled. She was worried, she stopped going to church and she had very little support."

A week before Taiwo's death, the court was told Ms Abubakar heard a "shouting voice" which told her to throw away her food and TV. She said this was different to the voice of the Holy Spirit, which she described as "gently speaking", the trial heard.

Dr Wynne said that prior to lockdown in 2020, Ms Abubakar was not known to mental health services.

"She was attending church, she was going out of the house, it seemed she was doing OK," he said.

Ms Abubakar, a devout Pentecostal Christian, came to the UK in 2011 from Nigeria, first staying in London with her sister before moving to Cardiff in 2017 as an asylum seeker after she gave birth.

The court was told Ms Abubakar described herself as having a much stronger faith than the rest of her family.

She was fearful of the dangers posed by Covid and rarely left her flat in the capital, the trial heard.

A friend who did shopping for the mother and son said that, by early June 2020, Taiwo looked "thin and unhappy".

He raised the alarm when he could not get a response at Ms Abubakar's flat on 29 June.

The trial continues.