Police blunders let Valdo Calocane kill. Families say cops failed victims before the Nottingham attack.
A police watchdog report revealed a key failure: officers didn’t probe Calocane’s attack on coworkers. This was weeks before his June 2023 rampage. The case was dropped before the murders.
Calocane fatally stabbed the three victims. On May 5, 2023, police went to a warehouse where Calocane, an agency worker, pushed and punched coworkers. Witnesses said he reached for a knife.
Officers didn’t act on this information, claiming they weren’t told about a knife. Police also didn’t download CCTV footage, claiming it was on body-worn cameras. They didn’t arrest or interview any witnesses.
Furthermore, they failed to check the Police National Computer, which would have shown Calocane’s prior attack. The IOPC report cited eleven mistakes and called the probe “exceptionally poor.” They said it was a “missed opportunity.”
This failure could have stopped the Nottingham attack. Victims’ families spoke about the failures, stating loved ones were badly failed. A simple check could have saved lives.
They said the police must live with the result. Other inquiries found errors by other authorities. Families feel Leicestershire cops have blood on their hands equally, and they feel let down by the IOPC report.
The investigation listed eleven key blunders. Officers took 18 minutes to arrive at the warehouse, exceeding the 15-minute target. A witness said Calocane grabbed for a knife, but officers didn’t act; they deny hearing this.
Police didn’t download CCTV footage because each officer thought the other had saved it. The video was wiped from the warehouse servers. They failed to save body-worn camera video, too, and no written statements were taken from victims.
Officers only contacted victims by email and phone, never visiting them in person. The victims spoke limited or no English, and police did not call a translator. A witness list existed, but they did not interview them.
Police did not check databases for Calocane’s history, and they missed an arrest warrant. He had other mental health incidents. No one tried to arrest Calocane; the supervising sergeant failed to review the case.
Families claim the police and watchdog are unfit. Leicestershire officers face a misconduct meeting soon. They will not lose their jobs, however, as the watchdog didn’t recommend firing them.
The officers included a rookie and her tutor. They got Calocane’s wrong name at first, then got correct details but did not check police systems. A check would have revealed an arrest warrant, and that he had also stalked prior housemates.
Calocane kicked a neighbor’s door, and the neighbor jumped out a window to escape. The IOPC said officers were “not responsible” for the attack, but better efforts might have stopped him.