Wolverhampton wife murder: Chances to protect mother stabbed to death by husband 'were missed'
The brutal murder of a mother of three 'might have been prevented' if there was not a catalogue of mistakes by local services, a new report has revealed.
Kanwal Azam was murdered by her husband Suhail last year, and was later jailed for life sentence.
But a report released yesterday has revealed that local services missed a series of opportunities to identify her as high risk and save her life.
West Midlands Police, The Haven, Wolverhampton's Children's Social Care and the Black Country NHS Foundation Trust all come in for criticism in the report which refers to Kanwal as Sana and Suhail as Anwar.
The police, the council's social care and the NHS foundation trust all failed to identify Kanwal as high risk, while The Haven identified her as high risk but not quick enough to save her.
"The Haven did identify the high risk Sana was facing in both 2013 and 2014. In 2013, the case was closed without a MARAC referral as Sana declined the service she was offered. In 2014, the risk assessment was not picked up quickly enough due to staff absence and capacity issues and as a result no intervention was made in time to save Sana.
"Had these responses been different, this homicide might have been prevented."
West Midlands Police visited Kanwal's home on March 29 last year after receiving a call from a concerned friend who had received a phone call from the victim during which Suhail could be heard in the background. The friend then heard Kanwal screaming before the phone disconnected, at which point the police were called.
Suhail was arrested by police an hour later and charged. He pleaded guilty at Stafford Crown Court and was sentenced to life with a minimum of 17 years.
