Nottingham Killer Valdo Calocane's Mother Denounces 'Broken' Mental Health System at Inquiry
Celeste Calocane, mother of Valdo Calocane, told the Nottingham Inquiry her son was sectioned four times within two years, forcing her to navigate incomprehensible services. The inquiry, scrutinising the June 2023 attacks, heard that Ms Calocane raised concerns about her son's risk to the public as early as August 2020.
Valdo Calocane, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2020, killed three individuals and attempted to murder three others in Nottingham. His family, based in Wales, stated he was studying in Nottingham when he experienced his first psychotic episode.
Timeline of Systemic Failures
Born in Guinea-Bissau in 1991, Calocane moved to the UK at 16. His mother noted a change in 2020 when he became 'agitated and crying'. After an arrest in May 2020 for attempting to break into a neighbour's flat, he was admitted to Highbury Hospital. Ms Calocane expressed concern over his early discharge in June 2020, feeling 'no power' to intervene. She contacted the crisis team again in July 2020 when her son's condition deteriorated, yet only a phone call was made to him. Days later, he again tried to enter a neighbour's flat.
Ms Calocane recounted that no one explained the risks associated with her son's condition, nor was she informed about decisions regarding his care. She only gained access to his medical records in 2024, after his sentencing for manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility and attempted murder. Despite speaking to mental health services '100 times', she felt powerless, unaware of his fourth hospital admission in 2022. Valdo Calocane withdrew consent for information sharing with his mother in December 2021, a decision she believes he lacked the capacity to make.
Addressing the inquiry chair, Deborah Taylor KC, Ms Calocane stated, 'The system is so broken. No-one should have to go to bed thinking I'm going to have a phone call tomorrow that something happened to my loved one. When it gets to crisis, it's too late.'
