NHS TRUST INVESTIGATED FOR MANSLAUGHTER OVER NOTTINGHAM KILLINGS

Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is being investigated for corporate manslaughter in connection with its care of Valdo Calocane, who fatally stabbed three people in Nottingham in June 2023. Calocane, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2020, was under the trust's care from 2020 until his discharge in September 2022, during which period he was sectioned under the Mental Health Act four times. The investigation is being carried out by Northumbria Police acting on behalf of Nottinghamshire Police. The trust has confirmed its full cooperation with the inquiry.

Calocane killed students Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19, and caretaker Ian Coates, 65. He was discharged after failing to attend appointments, with a statutory public inquiry hearing that the team had "lost" him. According to one report, a doctor warned Calocane he would end up killing somebody. Following the attacks, Calocane attempted to murder three pedestrians using a stolen van. The victims' families said the NHS trust had "catastrophically failed at every level" and welcomed the investigation as an important step towards accountability.

A statutory public inquiry chaired by Her Honour Deborah Taylor finished hearing evidence in May and will hear final submissions from all parties later this year. Northumbria Police stated it is in contact with the victims' families and survivors and is committed to supporting them throughout the investigation process. Nottinghamshire Police has previously faced criticism over its history of interactions with Calocane and its handling of the response and investigation into the attacks.