Mum speaks of 'unimaginable pain' after ex-partner killed 11-month-old son by chucking him in a river as he's detained

A TORMENTED mum today told of her "unimaginable pain" after her partner killed their baby son by throwing him a river.

Zak Bennett-Eko, 23, believed 11-month-old Zakari Bennett-Eko was "turning into the devil" before he hurled him into the River Irwell in Radcliffe.


He then walked to a nearby pub as emergency crews battle to save the youngster during the horror in September last year.

The paranoid schizophrenic said he saw Zakari's legs "expanding" before the killing.

He also passed two women with "eyes like the devil" on his way to the river who wanted him to drown his son, he said.

Zakari's mum Emma Blood today spoke of her pain over the death as Bennett-Eko was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order.

In a statement read to the court, she added: "I will never understand why, nor will I get over this."

Emma, who was eight months pregnant with Bennett-Eko's daughter at the time of their son's death, added: "I can only hope, in time, the man responsible will come to understand the unimaginable pain his actions have caused."

'SLIPPED THROUGH THE NET'

Three psychiatrists said Bennett-Eko "may never be released" from the top-security hospital he has been kept in since his son's death.

Sentencing, Mr Justice Fraser said: "It is not the only failure of the system in your case.

"You seem to have slipped through the net in terms of care for your mental illness, which in hindsight was much more serious than was realised at the time."

Bennett-Eko, who had beencharged with murder, was yesterday convicted of manslaughter by diminished responsibility.

There were cries of "yes" from the public gallery at the Nightingale court sitting at the Lowry theatre in Salford.

'HE'S GOING MAD'

During the trial, jurors heard Bennett-Eko had contacted the hospital and his doctor's surgery a number of times in the days before the horror.

The dad who was diagnosed with psychosis related to cannabis use at the age of 17, began to miss GP appointments following Zakari's birth.

On September 8 – three days before the killing – he went to North Manchester General Hospital and asked to be sectioned but left before he could be treated.

In harrowing text messages, his partner Emma Blood told pals he had kicked her door in and claimed Beyonce was his mum.

In one message, she said: "He's saying Zakari isn't our baby and stuff. One second he's OK, the next minute he's going mad saying he's going to kill himself."

On the day of the killing, Bennett-Eko had argued with Ms Blood, who was eight months pregnant at the time.

She told him he needed to start looking after himself because she would not be able to care for two babies and him.

'WHAT THE F*** AM I DOING?'

Rob Hall, prosecuting, said: "It may be that exchange set the seed in Zak's mind that they would be better off without Zakari."

Bennett-Eko later left the family home in Radcliffe with his son in a pushchair and walked to the river.

He was seen by two teens removing his son from the pushchair, swinging him from side-to-side and then throwing him into the river below.

The dad then walked to a nearby pub where he was later arrested after telling a punter what he had done.

Little Zakari was pulled from the river at around 5.15pm but tragically died later that night in hospital.

The prosecution argued he was guilty of manslaughter by diminished responsibility, while the defence said he is not guilty by reason of insanity.

Psychiatrist Dr Inti Qurashi told the court Bennett-Eko said he hesitated before he threw Zakari into the river and thought: "What the f*** am I doing?"

But Bennett-Eko's treating clinician Dr John Crosby told the court he believed he was throwing the devil into the river at the time.

He said: "He should never have been discharged from community mental health services."

Senior Investigating Officer, Duncan Thorpe, from GMP's Major Incident Team, said: "This was an absolutely horrific incident that shocked the whole community and left members of the public who witnessed it extremely upset.

"Baby Zakari had only been with us for 11 months and his life ended after being thrown into a fast-moving river.

"Our thoughts are with the baby's family who have had to come to terms with the loss of their precious baby."


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