Sick web of lies of cruel mum who left baby alone to starve to death for birthday bender
Sick web of lies of cruel mum who left baby alone to starve to death for birthday bender
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Baby Asiah Kudi lay helplessly dying in her cot while her mother, Verphy Kudi, selfishly partied hundreds of miles away. The tragic death of infant Asiah shocked the nation and left her family in mourning after her teenage mother abandoned her for six days to celebrate her 18th birthday across the country. In August 2021, Kudi was jailed for nine years after admitting to manslaughter and will serve two-thirds of her sentence in prison before being released on licence.
Kudi left her 20-month-old daughter home alone in their Brighton flat on December 5, 2019, so that she could cruelly embark on a six-day bender. Chilling CCTV footage captured within Gocher Court, the accommodation for vulnerable families where Kudi and Asiah lived, showed the mother leaving the complex, dressed in blue jeans and a black sweatshirt, with a black bag slung over her shoulder. From there, Kudi travelled to London, where she kicked off an extended period of celebrations with her boyfriend. Images taken from her mobile phone two days later, on December 8, showed her partying at a concert in London's Elephant and Castle. Her hair was in a high ponytail and she was wearing a bright orange dress with an entry band around her wrist.
The courtroom heard how Kudi attended the 1990s concert and stayed out until 4am, even having a DJ announce her birthday. On December 9, she moved on to a birthday party in Coventry, 150 miles from Brighton. She travelled back to London the next day before returning home to East Sussex on December 11 to find Asiah's dead body in her cot. The young mother waited three hours to call 999, telling the operator: "Help, my baby is not waking up." Ambulance staff arrived at the flat shortly after 6pm to find her "incoherent, distressed and distraught" and her daughter lying on the floor. They rushed Asiah to the city's Royal Alexandra Children's Hospital, but medical staff were unable to revive her.
A post-mortem examination determined the cause of Asiah's death was neglect; a combination of starvation, dehydration and the flu. But it wasn't the first time Kudi had left Asiah alone, with the court hearing she had been abandoned at least a dozen times before. On October 23, 2019, Asiah was left for seven hours and again on November 7 for 11 hours. Another time she was left for 17 hours. At sentencing, Judge Christine Laing QC said, in the opinion of a medical professional, it's "unlikely that Asiah would have cried for any length of time because she had already learnt that, on many occasions, there was unlikely to be a response. And when her suffering became too great, she would not have had the strength to cry".
Kudi disturbingly tried to cover up her crimes after returning home to find her daughter dead. Before admitting to manslaughter, she spun a web of lies about her whereabouts. She claimed her mum was looking after Asiah while she attended parties in London, Coventry and Solihull, despite having an estranged relationship with her family for a long while. After discovering Asiah dead, Kudi claimed her daughter had been unwell all day and fell asleep after eating a banana and drinking some milk. She then said she never woke up again. But when police showed her CCTV that confirmed she left the flat for six days, Kudi changed her story. She told them: "I'm heartbroken, my heart hurts so much I don't know how to breathe. I'm trying so hard to be strong.".
On the day Asiah was found dead, Kudi had tweeted about selling tickets for an upcoming gig. At 9.32am, she posted on Twitter: "Three standing lil durk tickets for the 3rd Feb. DM me." Her account @veeeldn was later deleted. Judge Laing noted that the teen had left her daughter unable to do anything to draw attention to her plight. She said: "She was a helpless child and relied completely on you as her mother to provide for her needs. It is almost unbearable to contemplate her suffering in the final days of her life, suffering that she endured so that you could celebrate your birthday and the birthdays of your friends as a carefree teenager.".
The inquest heard that social workers were worried about Asiah's care in the weeks before the tragedy. A series of incidents at the supported housing unit raised concerns. Staff at the unit contacted social workers after watching CCTV of Kudi leaving her baby girl home alone. Steps were also taken to refer the case to Front Door for Families, that specialises in child safeguarding, but the referral was never made.
At the time of her death, Asiah did not have her own social worker or involvement from any external agencies. A social worker was assigned to Kudi. A safeguarding review by the Brighton and Hove Safeguarding Children Partnership was published in 2022 and found Asiah's death could not have been predicted as staff at the YCMA Downslink believed Kudi was a capable and loving parent. However, the body's independent report recommended bringing in a system of daily checks and regularly reviewing every young parent in supported accommodation.
