A 30-year-old U.K. mother and member of the Black Hebrew Israelite religion was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 25 years for murdering her 3-year-old son. According to Sky News, Christina Robinson is said to have waged a “campaign of violence” against her son Dwelaniyah at their family home in Durham weeks before he succumbed to his injuries.
The Durham Constabulary in a statement said Robinson also fabricated lies to “cover up” the injuries her son sustained from her attacks. Dwelaniyah is said to have suffered 20 percent burns and also had over 60 marks on his body. Robinson was handed the prison sentence after she was found guilty of murder and four child cruelty offenses.
Authorities said that on November November 5, 2022, Robinson called for an ambulance to their home because her son was not breathing after he allegedly choked on a cheese sandwich. But her phone history showed Robinson made that call 19 minutes after her son collapsed, authorities said, adding that the 30-year-old rather went on the internet to search for how to administer CPR and also called her husband who was away working.
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“Emergency workers never found anything to suggest there was an obstruction, and this was later backed up by medical experts,’ the statement said. Dwelaniyah was rushed to a hospital where he was shortly pronounced dead.
Authorities said Dwelaniyah had suffered “significant injuries all over his body” when he was found. The injuries included “serious burns to his bottom and the upper parts of his legs, which were sustained up to three weeks before his death.”
“It is believed he sustained these by being submerged in a bath of boiling water, and Robinson never sought medical treatment,” the statement continued. Robinson did not seek professional medical care for her son and rather wrapped the minor with bandages that she ordered online. She also went on the internet to seek medical advice.
“Medical experts said he would have been in significant pain because of these injuries and a ‘whimpering’ sound was reportedly heard coming from the house for about two weeks,” the statement said. “It is believed the burns were so serious that he would have spent a significant amount of time in hospital receiving treatment and that the recovery that followed would have been lengthy.”
Authorities said an autopsy determined Dwelaniyah died after suffering a head injury that stemmed from being shaken or thrown against something. Authorities also said there was subsequent evidence of a second head injury the 3-year-old suffered a few days before he died.
A bamboo cane containing Dwelaniyah’s blood was also found in the house, and authorities said Robinson used it to beat her son. The court was told that weeks before murdering her son, Robinson had said that the Bible allowed the use of the rod to correct children, per Sky News.
“In the days leading up to his death, the youngster is believed to have consumed some of Robinson’s tablets that were in the kitchen. He later vomited and again did not seek medical help – instead in a WhatsApp conversation Robinson said ‘(Dwelaniyah) will get what he deserves,’” the statement said.
Robinson was also accused of regularly leaving Dwelaniyah and his younger sibling home alone for up to two hours at a time. She is said to have left her children home alone to attend her own medical appointments after she got pregnant through a sperm donor. She also left them to pick up her boyfriend from the train station.
“Dwelaniyah was a defenseless little boy who had his life ahead of him, but this was cruelly taken away his own mother – someone he should have been able to trust, someone who should have cared about him,” Detective Chief Inspector Simon Turner, Senior Investigating Officer for Operation Aruana at Durham Constabulary, said.
“We may never know why or what caused Christina Robinson to do what she did. Her actions are unforgivable and sadly nothing will bring Dwelaniyah back but at least she is now facing the consequences of what she has done. This has been a truly heartbreaking and emotional case for everyone involved, including my investigation team, who have worked tirelessly to bring Robinson to justice. My thoughts remain with those who loved and cared about Dwelaniyah.”
