Nottingham triple killer punched colleague in face month before fatal stabbings

Nottingham triple killer Valdo Calocane attacked two colleagues - punching one in the face - a month before his fatal stabbings, an inquiry has been told.

The investigation in London has been hearing about events involving CaIocane before he killed University of Nottingham undergraduates Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19; and grandfather Ian Coates, 65. He also attempted to kill three more people during his attack in Nottingham in the early hours of 13 June 2023.

The inquiry has heard that a month earlier Calocane, who has been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, was working in a Derby warehouse for logistics company Arvato when he attacked two colleagues, who were a married couple. He punched the man in the face before pushing over the woman and hurting her leg.

The inquiry has previously heard how Calocane put a flatmate in a headlock and trapped him in his flat in January 2022; and how he headbutted, punched and swung handcuffs at a police officer, in September 2021. On Tuesday a training coordinator for Arvato at the time of the warehouse attack told what had happened during the incident on 5 May 2023, referring to Calocane as VC.

'We heard a scream' Identified only as Louisa, she said: "We heard a scream from the back of the warehouse. I then started to move in that direction.

"The two victims - the wife, she was in front of the husband, the husband was already on the floor. He had already been assaulted.

"As I got into the area I stood myself in front of VC so my back would have been to the victims. VC was just stood in front of me, there was no words coming out of VC's mouth." The coordinator then told the inquiry that "for the seconds I was stood in front of VC his attention was not on me.