Girl describes moment mother tried to murder her by stabbing her over 70 times

Alison O’Riordan

A girl has described the moment her mother locked their bedroom door before pushing a kitchen knife through her chest in an attempted murder in which the child was stabbed more than 70 times.

In her victim impact statement, which was read to the Central Criminal Court by a garda, the young girl, now in foster care, said she no longer loves the defendant but doesn't hate her either, telling her mother: "I hope you have a nice time in prison."

The court heard that neighbours made a frantic effort during the attack to reach the girl, who was heard telling her mother: "Mum don't do this, I will die".

Last January, a jury unanimously found the girl's mother, a 49-year-old Russian national, guilty of the attempted murder of her then eight-year-old daughter.

Specialist interviews

In specialist interviews with investigating gardaí, the girl described how her mother held a knife over her and told her: "I'm going to kill you and after will kill myself, as that will be best."

She said her mother also told her: "This is what needs to happen, it's for the best."

The girl sustained more than 70 stab wounds during the attack by her mother, who also attempted to strangle her.

The defendant, who cannot be named to protect her daughter’s right to anonymity, had denied the charge before the Central Criminal Court sitting in Limerick.

On January 23rd last, the trial jury unanimously agreed that the mother was guilty of the girl’s attempted murder.

The trial heard the defendant had told gardaí following her arrest that she was “out of my mind” when she attacked her daughter.

Lorcan Connolly SC, prosecuting on Monday, told Justice Kerida Naidoo the case was opened on the basis that the woman had attempted to murder her then eight-year-old daughter on September 27th 2022, "with the application of a knife and a cable ligature, causing life-changing injuries".

Detective Garda Cathal Reilly detailed the events of that morning, telling counsel that the defendant, along with her Ukrainian husband and daughter, fled the war in Ukraine in March 2022, six months before the attack on the girl.

The detective said the mother and daughter had stayed in a number of temporary accommodation premises before finding shared accommodation, which consisted of a bedroom with an ensuite and a communal kitchen.

The mother and daughter were living separately from the child's father at this point, as there was "marital disharmony".

Connolly said the child was enrolled in a national school and was settling in quite well. However, he said the defendant was suffering from depression, lost weight and had been taken to hospital.

The detective said the mother had attended a health centre the day before the incident to say she was depressed and that she didn't have a GP.

A prescription was issued, and an appointment was scheduled for medical care on September 29, 2022.

On the morning of September 27, Mr Connolly said the defendant had got up at 7am and gone to the communal kitchen area.

He said a Ukrainian woman in the house had given evidence to the trial that she saw the defendant preparing breakfast before returning to her bedroom. Within five minutes, the witness said she heard screams coming from the bedroom.

When the witness went to investigate, she found the defendant's bedroom door locked. The detective said "desperate" but fruitless efforts were made by her and others to open the door.

He said the defendant had claimed "everything was OK" inside the room but wouldn't open the door.

The witness told gardaí that a black-handled knife with a steel blade was missing from the cutlery drawer in the kitchen. The witness and her husband heard the eight-year-old girl say: "Mum, don't do this, I will die". The witness recalled that the defendant had replied to the child, "we will die together".

Mr Connolly said gardaí arrived at 8am and an officer saw blood in the bedroom when he looked through a window. He formed the view that "life was endangered" and the bedroom door was kicked in.

The girl, who was wearing only underwear, was found with multiple wounds in the shower area. There was blood flowing into the drain of the shower, and the girl's skin was turning white. Gardaí also saw a knife and a phone charging cable.

Det Gda Reilly said the defendant was beside the child, staring into space, and failed to respond to Garda instruction. The mother was removed from the ensuite and handcuffed before her "seriously injured" daughter was rushed by ambulance to hospital.

Injuries

A doctor noted a rapid heart rate along with 72 wounds, two abrasions and a ligature mark to the child's neck. The wounds were distributed across the chest and abdomen, as well as the lower and upper limbs.

The officer said the child's condition initially stabilised but then deteriorated due to blood accumulating in the sack around the heart, which had interfered with cardiac function.

Connolly said when the girl was well enough, she gave evidence to specialised garda interviewers, which was played at the trial.

The child had recalled her mother "pacing" that morning and having "some kind of strange look".

She said when "the hitting" stopped, her mother had sat down next to her.

The child said her mother told her she was scared someone was going to take her daughter away.

The barrister said the child described how she had stayed silent as she didn't want her mother to feel threatened and react.

According to medics, counsel said the mother had overdosed and became unconscious.

When the defendant was interviewed in March, 2023 she told gardaí: "It wasn't planned and I didn't do it on purpose." She said she had a long history of anxiety and depression.

The defendant, who has no previous convictions, told officers she had awoken in an acute anxious state with a fixation that her daughter would not be returned to her. She said she had attempted to choke her daughter but couldn't carry that out.

Defence counsel Mark Nicholas said his client had a difficult psychiatric history before she came to Ireland. Between 2008 and 2019, there were various psychiatric engagements in Russia and Ukraine, where the defendant had been hospitalised five times and diagnosed with bipolar affective disorder.

Mr Justice Naidoo remanded the defendant in custody until May 5, when counsel will make submissions as to how the sentence should be structured.