WEMBLEY MOTHER DECLARED INSANE AFTER KILLING HER BABY
A mother was suffering from insanity when she killed her five-month-old son, an Old Bailey jury has found.Mariam Benzain stated she was instructed by Allah to sacrifice her son Elias Biad when she cut the baby's throat.
The 32-year-old admitted to killing her baby at their family home in Preston Road, Wembley, on 22 July 2020.
The jury decided she was not guilty of murder by reason of insanity, and she will be detained in a psychiatric hospital indefinitely.
The judge, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb, commented, "In my judgment you remain extremely ill, dangerous and in need of further treatment which is available." Benzain, who also has two other children from a previous marriage in Morocco, had previously suffered postnatal depression and was considered bipolar.
Prosecutor Zoe Johnson QC described Benzain as suffering from "a disease of the mind" during the attack, which included "grandiose delusions and instructive, auditory hallucinations telling her she needed, in effect, to sacrifice her son to save the world." The court was told Benzain called her husband to confess, saying: "I slaughtered Elias ...
Allah told me to slaughter him." The court also heard that Benzain later told a doctor her actions had been "on the spur of the moment" and that she believed she acted to "go to heaven" after receiving thoughts from Allah.
The attack was discovered by Elias's father, Abdelilah Biad, after he was driven home from work by a colleague.
Emergency services found significant injuries to the baby's neck.
Benzain claimed her actions were impulsive and believed she was acting for humanity's benefit, not recognizing her mental illness or needing help.
