The murder of an asylum seeker murdered and mutilated by a racist neighbour who had just been released from a psychiatric hospital could have been avoided, a safeguarding review has concluded.
Kamil Ahmad, a Kurdish man who had sought sanctuary in the UK after being persecuted in Iraq, was stabbed to death in Bristol by Jeffrey Barry, who had paranoid schizophrenia.
A safeguarding adults review (SAR) published on Thursday raised particular concern about how Barry was released from hospital on the day of the murder in 2016 and was able to return to the supported living accommodation where both killer and victim lived. The way the city council and police dealt with the case are also flagged up in the report.
Ahmad’s brother, Kamaran Ahmad Ali, said: “This report confirms our worst fears, that Kamil’s life could have been saved if just one of the organisations involved had protected him from the racism that ended his life.
“The space this leaves in our lives can never be filled, yet not one of the organisations involved has offered us an apology since we lost our wonderful brother, uncle, cousin and friend. We call on each of these organisations to apologise and to sit down with us to answer our questions.
“The chief executive of the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust in particular must also consider her position given so many of these catastrophic failings happened on her watch.”
The family’s solicitor, Tony Murphy, of Bhatt Murphy, said: “Any member of our society is entitled to protection from a known violent racist, not least a vulnerable asylum seeker. This systemic failure to protect Kamil constitutes race discrimination on a multi-agency level and a fatal breach of his human rights.
“The family now awaits the findings of an NHS homicide review, including to consider whether all of the evidence concerning this tragedy should be referred to the Crown Prosecution Service and the Equalities and Human Rights Commission.”
Louise Lawton, independent chair of the Bristol Safeguarding Adults Board (BSAB), said: “Kamil was tragically murdered in a country where he was seeking safety and his death has affected many people across Bristol and beyond.
“The SAR has highlighted some important learning and has identified opportunities which could have been taken to separate Kamil and Mr X [Barry]. Of particular consequence is the process by which Mr X was discharged from a secure hospital on the day of Kamil’s murder, how agencies worked together to coordinate care and assess risk, and opportunities to terminate Mr X’s tenancy at the housing provision.
“The review also found Mr X had a significant history and pattern of racially motivated attacks against Kamil, which culminated in his murder.”
The report concluded: “The fatal assault on Kamil on the evening of 6th July could have been avoided. The decision to discharge Mr X … was based on incomplete information. As a result, it foreshortened his compulsory treatment.”
It added: “It is clear that the decision to discharge the section had tragic consequences. It would seem that the tribunal did not follow the recommendations of the professionals involved and did not fully appreciate the significance of the problems in the accommodation and the inherent risk of Mr X’s return.”
But it also said: “There were several opportunities in the scoping period, but also stretching back to 2014 when actions could have been taken to separate Mr X and Kamil.”
The review makes 16 recommendations for the BSAB and organisations including Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust, Cygnet Health Care, Avon and Somerset police and Bristol city council.
Lawton added: “The review highlights some key areas which need to change, which cross the work of many different professionals, and I am encouraged by how agencies have engaged with this review process.”
Rebecca Eastley, medical director for the Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership Trust (AWP), said: “This was a tragic and brutal death and we are deeply sorry.
“We accept the findings of the report in its entirety and feel it is a fair and comprehensive analysis of the circumstances surrounding Kamil’s death. We have been working closely with our partner organisations on a series of actions as well as reviewing our own internal processes.”
Jacqui Jensen, executive director adults, children and education at Bristol city council, said: “This was a terrible tragedy and I, on behalf of the council, wish to extend my deepest sympathy to Kamil’s family and friends. We have carefully read and considered the contents and recommendations contained within the comprehensive review and will act accordingly.
Superintendent Andy Bennett, of Avon and Somerset police, said: “We investigated a number of complaints made by Kamil Ahmad in the years prior to his murder. We were deeply saddened by his death and our thoughts continue to be with his family.
“There is never any excuse for hate crime in any shape or form and victims should feel confident in the belief that we’ll take reports seriously, protect them and make sure they get all the support they need.
“This case reminds us of the impact of mental health and highlights the importance of continuing to work closely with our partners in keeping everyone safe.”
A Cygnet Health Care spokesperson said: “The recommendations … highlighted only one aspect of Cygnet’s services, that we were required to address, which was our discharge procedures. We have acted on the BSAB’s advice and undertaken a number of measures.”
During Barry’s trial at Bristol crown court, it emerged that he had been arrested and sectioned the month before the murder, having made threats to kill Ahmad, 48, but was released from a psychiatric hospital after promising not to consume alcohol, which exacerbated his condition.
Barry immediately went on a drinking binge, returned home, armed himself with a knife and attacked Ahmad, who did not know Barry had been freed. Ahmad suffered more than 70 knife wounds and his penis was cut off. The trial judge, Mrs Justice May, said a mental health tribunal’s decision to release him was “calamitous”.
In the three years before the attack, Ahmad had complained to police four times that Barry had assaulted him.
Barry, who has been jailed for life, was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 1986 and for long periods his illness was controlled by medication. He moved in 2010 into accommodation in Knowle, south Bristol, run by the Milestones Trust charity.
The case has echoes of the death of Bijan Ebrahimi, a disabled Iranian refugee murdered by a neighbour in Bristol in 2013 after years of racial abuse and having been wrongly branded a paedophile. Avon and Somerset police and Bristol city council have been criticised over their role in the Ebrahimi case. In 2016, a police officer and a community support officer were jailed for failing to support Ebrahimi.
