Killer stepfather of schoolboy Daniel Pelka found dead in prison

Mariusz Krezolek’s death comes six months after four-year-old’s mother killed herself in jail cell

The killer stepfather of schoolboy Daniel Pelka has been found dead in prison six months after his partner and Daniel’s mother, Magdelena Luczak, killed herself in her jail cell.
Mariusz Krezolek, who was being held at Full Sutton prison in east Yorkshire, is thought to have killed himself. Two and a half years ago he and Luczak were jailed for life for murdering four-year-old Daniel by battering him to death.

For six months prior to Daniel’s death, Krezolek and Luczak systematically denied him meals and force-fed him salt to make him vomit when he was caught sneaking extra food.

Daniel stole sandwiches from other children at school and dug through bins for discarded apple cores. His body was so emaciated that one experienced healthworker compared it to that of a concentration camp victim.

A statement from the Prison Service on Friday said: “HMP Full Sutton prisoner Mariusz Krezolek was found unresponsive in his cell at 8.30am on Wednesday 28 January. Staff immediately attempted resuscitation but he was pronounced dead shortly after. As with all deaths in custody, there will be an investigation by the independent prisons and probation ombudsman.”
Luczak was found dead on 14 July 2015, two years into her life sentence with a minimum of 30 years in custody.

The couple kept Daniel locked for long periods in a small, unheated room, which he had to use as a toilet, at the family home in Coventry. Officers found hand and fingerprints on the inside of the door, which had no handle, indicating Daniel had desperately tried to get out.

When the pair believed Daniel had misbehaved, they threw him into cold baths. His mother once boasted that she had almost drowned him, and his sibling – who cannot be identified – reported once having seen Daniel’s head being held under water. The couple ordered Daniel to adopt stress positions used by torturers and to go on endurance runs around the house.

Daniel died in March 2012 after being hit around the head by one or both adults. His body was laid out on a bed next to his terrified sibling. Luczak and Krezolek waited 33 hours before calling 999.

During the trial it emerged that professionals had had a string of contacts with the family and some had raised concerns. A serious case review published in September 2013 found that teachers, health professionals, social workers and police officers treated Daniel as if he was “invisible”.

The review team accused Daniel’s school of having a “dysfunctional” approach to children’s safeguarding issues, highlighting that teachers had noticed injuries to his face and had locked away pupils’ lunch boxes to stop him stealing food, but had not taken effective action to help him.

The report said police attended Daniel’s “chaotic” household almost 30 times in response to reports of domestic abuse in the six years before his death. It suggested officers could have done more to ensure he was being treated well.

A community pediatrician who saw Daniel a month before he was murdered was criticized for putting his weight loss down to worms rather than possible child abuse. When Daniel’s body was examined, he was 9.5kg (1 stone 9lb), the sort of weight normally associated with an 18-month-old. A radiologist compared Daniel’s frame to that of a seriously ill cancer patient.

Both Krezolek and Luczak initially blamed each other during the trial and claimed that Daniel collapsed after suffering chest pains. But detectives discovered texts exchanged between the defendants that indicated their abuse. One sent by Krezolek said: “Well now he is temporarily unconscious because I nearly drowned him.”

A postmortem examination revealed that Daniel died of bleeding and swelling in the brain.