A mother described as “callous and uncaring” has been handed a minimum jail term of more than 12 years for murdering her seven-week-old daughter by shattering her skull in a fit of rage.
Sarah Ngaba was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 12 years and 154 days. The judge presiding over the case described the killing of Eliza Ngaba as “the culmination of increasingly hostile behaviour” towards the infant.
Ngaba was found guilty of murder last month at Birmingham Crown Court. Jurors heard that severe injuries, including violent shaking and an impact to the head in November 2019, contributed to London-born Eliza’s death from an infection in August 2022.
Ngaba, formerly of Briarwood in Brookside, Telford, Shropshire, had previously been jailed for 14 years in 2021 for wounding in connection with the same incident, and was subsequently charged with murder after Eliza’s death.
The 32-year-old sought to conceal her actions by lying to medics and police. CCTV footage captured her visiting a shop to buy a lottery ticket before taking Eliza to hospital in a taxi on 13 November 2019.
Sentencing Ngaba, Mrs Justice Brunner praised Eliza’s “remarkable” foster parents, Laura and Gary Haynes, who provided a “stable and caring household” and brought “much love and happiness” into the child’s life.
The foster parents shared a statement expressing their deep love for Eliza and their daily missing of her “bright and sunny nature”.
Addressing Ngaba in the dock, the judge criticised her for booking a taxi to transport Eliza to hospital, thereby delaying crucial medical help and failing to maximise her daughter’s chances of effective treatment.
Ruling that Eliza’s head was likely to have been struck against a wall, Mrs Justice Brunner told Ngaba: “The distribution of injuries shows this was not a momentary attack. The trigger for you losing your temper is not clear. The result of that assault was immediately catastrophic.
“It would have been obvious to you straight away that Eliza had serious injuries but you continued to act in a callous way. You deliberately delayed and you deliberately concealed Eliza’s terrible state. Instead you put your interests above hers.”
The judge noted the unusual aspect of the case where Ngaba had already served six years and 211 days of her 14-year sentence for wounding, a period that was subtracted from what would have been a 19-year minimum term for murder.
In mitigation, Gordon Aspden KC told the court that Ngaba had joined the Anglican community while serving at HMP Foston Hall in Derbyshire, where the chaplain described her as a model prisoner and “never violent”.
Mr Aspden stated: “It’s difficult to imagine a more melancholy and tragic case than this for so many people, not least the victim. We would invite the court to pass the least possible minimum term.”
Prosecutor Lisa Hancox had previously stated that “the medical evidence in this case shows that Eliza’s injuries were caused by two distinct and different mechanisms – that is shaking and impact. Clearly the attack was prolonged.”
Ms Hancox added that Ngaba had shown growing hostility towards Eliza prior to the attack, and her reaction to the infant’s collapse had been “callous and uncaring”.
She concluded: “The prosecution case is that Eliza died as a result of a violent assault inflicted by her mother during what can properly be described as a loss of control amounting to a fit of rage. It was a sustained and aggressive assault upon a defenceless infant.”
After the sentencing, Kate Seal, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This is one of the most distressing cases I have encountered in my eight years as a prosecutor.
“Eliza was just seven weeks old, entirely defenceless, and dependent on her mother for care and protection.
“Sarah Ngaba inflicted catastrophic injuries on a defenceless baby and then did everything she could to avoid responsibility for what she had done. Her account changed repeatedly and in ways that served only her own interests.
“She initially blamed a walking stick, then Eliza’s father, and when phone records and CCTV proved that was impossible, she changed her account again.
“Eliza should have been safe in her mother’s care. Instead, her life was irrevocably damaged and, ultimately, cut short. Our thoughts remain with all those who loved her.”
West Mercia Police Detective Chief Inspector Lee Holehouse, who led the investigation into Eliza’s death, said: “We will never fully understand why Ngaba assaulted Eliza when she was just seven weeks old.
“She has shown no remorse throughout either of our investigations and continues to take no responsibility for the suffering she caused Eliza.
“Her new family gave her the life she so much deserved. She died knowing she was loved and continues to be loved by all those who had the pleasure of knowing her during her short life.”
