Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, and her long-term partner Andrzej Latoszewski,
38, were sentenced to a minimum of 39 years in prison for the killing of
Sebastian Kalinowski, 15 years old.
Sebastian died of an illness “induced by untreated sequelae of multiple rib
fractures” after living with the couple in Huddersfield for less than a
year after moving from Poland.
The adolescent was struck on the buttocks with a wooden bed slat, whipped
with an extension cable, and stabbed in the thigh and crotch with a needle,
according to evidence heard at Leeds Crown Court.
West Yorkshire Police released an undated handout file photo of Sebastian
Kalinowski, who died in August of an illness caused by “untreated
consequences of multiple rib fractures,” which allegedly occurred after
weeks of “cruel assaults and maltreatment.” Agnieszka Kalinowska, accused
of torturing her son to death with her partner Andrzej Latoszewski, sobbed
as she told Leeds Crown Court that she “should have died instead of him.
Prosecutors said the defendants installed CCTV inside their home to “watch
and impose control on Sebastian remotely.”
When this was confiscated by authorities after their arrest, it revealed
that in the weeks running up to his death on August 13, 2021, “hardly a day
went by that Sebastian was not subjected to some type of physical abuse.”
More than two and a half hours after CCTV showed Latoszewski pulling the
youngster “naked, plainly wet, and unconscious” from his bedroom, police
were summoned.
“You, Latoszewski, are a bully,” the judge remarked as he sentenced the
couple in front of cameras for the third time in England and Wales.
“You, like all bullies, tried to intimidate and scare Sebastian, who was
weaker than you. Sebastian was an easy prey for you.
At points while watching the video, I was convinced you had lost sight of
the fact that you were hitting a human creature rather than a punching bag.”
“As for you, Kalinowska, the reason is simple: you didn’t care for
Sebastian. You were solely concerned with yourself.”
Jurors heard how Sebastian had gone to West Yorkshire to live with his mum
in October 2020 after being found guilty this summer.
According to prosecutor Jason Pitter KC, on New Year’s Eve, the defendants
saw the victim as “somewhat of a bother,” and their “discipline of him got
progressively harsh” by January 2021.
He went on to say that such “punishments” got “increasingly more brutal and
savage over time.”
The couple wished to discipline him.
Geraldine Kelly defended Latoszewski, saying, “However irrational it
appears, and twisted a way of thinking, there is evidence to suggest what
drove this horrible treatment was their desire to discipline (Sebastian).”
According to the court, he spoke very little English and had yet to make
any friends at school.
Mrs Justice Lambert stated that he “had neither friends nor allies in this
country and was completely reliant on you both for his well-being.”
Sebastian’s father, Jacek Kalinowska, who watched the sentencing from
Poland, stated in a victim impact statement, “You have taken my son’s life
in a brutal and merciless way.” You’ve made every day of Sebastian’s life a
misery.
“You made my son a punchbag for yourself, you performed a horrific deed,
and you were brutal.”
“Perhaps I wasn’t an ideal father, but I adored Sebastian.” But I couldn’t
protect him from evil, evil perpetrated on him by his own mother.”
His mother wailed as she was led away from the dock, but her lover seemed
expressionless.
West Yorkshire Police lead investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector
Tony Nicholson stated after the hearing that his team had been forced to
watch 4,000 hours of distressing CCTV footage from the couple’s house.
He called it “the most terrible, awful, and heartbreaking” inquiry he has
ever conducted in his 29-year career.
38, were sentenced to a minimum of 39 years in prison for the killing of
Sebastian Kalinowski, 15 years old.
Sebastian died of an illness “induced by untreated sequelae of multiple rib
fractures” after living with the couple in Huddersfield for less than a
year after moving from Poland.
The adolescent was struck on the buttocks with a wooden bed slat, whipped
with an extension cable, and stabbed in the thigh and crotch with a needle,
according to evidence heard at Leeds Crown Court.
West Yorkshire Police released an undated handout file photo of Sebastian
Kalinowski, who died in August of an illness caused by “untreated
consequences of multiple rib fractures,” which allegedly occurred after
weeks of “cruel assaults and maltreatment.” Agnieszka Kalinowska, accused
of torturing her son to death with her partner Andrzej Latoszewski, sobbed
as she told Leeds Crown Court that she “should have died instead of him.
Prosecutors said the defendants installed CCTV inside their home to “watch
and impose control on Sebastian remotely.”
When this was confiscated by authorities after their arrest, it revealed
that in the weeks running up to his death on August 13, 2021, “hardly a day
went by that Sebastian was not subjected to some type of physical abuse.”
More than two and a half hours after CCTV showed Latoszewski pulling the
youngster “naked, plainly wet, and unconscious” from his bedroom, police
were summoned.
“You, Latoszewski, are a bully,” the judge remarked as he sentenced the
couple in front of cameras for the third time in England and Wales.
“You, like all bullies, tried to intimidate and scare Sebastian, who was
weaker than you. Sebastian was an easy prey for you.
At points while watching the video, I was convinced you had lost sight of
the fact that you were hitting a human creature rather than a punching bag.”
“As for you, Kalinowska, the reason is simple: you didn’t care for
Sebastian. You were solely concerned with yourself.”
Jurors heard how Sebastian had gone to West Yorkshire to live with his mum
in October 2020 after being found guilty this summer.
According to prosecutor Jason Pitter KC, on New Year’s Eve, the defendants
saw the victim as “somewhat of a bother,” and their “discipline of him got
progressively harsh” by January 2021.
He went on to say that such “punishments” got “increasingly more brutal and
savage over time.”
The couple wished to discipline him.
Geraldine Kelly defended Latoszewski, saying, “However irrational it
appears, and twisted a way of thinking, there is evidence to suggest what
drove this horrible treatment was their desire to discipline (Sebastian).”
According to the court, he spoke very little English and had yet to make
any friends at school.
Mrs Justice Lambert stated that he “had neither friends nor allies in this
country and was completely reliant on you both for his well-being.”
Sebastian’s father, Jacek Kalinowska, who watched the sentencing from
Poland, stated in a victim impact statement, “You have taken my son’s life
in a brutal and merciless way.” You’ve made every day of Sebastian’s life a
misery.
“You made my son a punchbag for yourself, you performed a horrific deed,
and you were brutal.”
“Perhaps I wasn’t an ideal father, but I adored Sebastian.” But I couldn’t
protect him from evil, evil perpetrated on him by his own mother.”
His mother wailed as she was led away from the dock, but her lover seemed
expressionless.
West Yorkshire Police lead investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector
Tony Nicholson stated after the hearing that his team had been forced to
watch 4,000 hours of distressing CCTV footage from the couple’s house.
He called it “the most terrible, awful, and heartbreaking” inquiry he has
ever conducted in his 29-year career.
