A mum who starved her four-year-old son before beating him to death tried to bribe him with a CHOCOLATE BAR to stay silent about his abuse, a court heard.
Magdalena Luczak, 27, and her partner Mariusz Krezolek , 33, are accused of depriving tragic Daniel Pelka, of food, force-feeding him salt and locking him in a homemade prison.
The tragic toddler was so skinny he resembled a “concentration camp victim” before he died from a head injury at his home in Coventry, on March 3 last year.
Luczak sent text messages to Krezolek in which she boasted about offering Daniel sweets if he didn’t tell the teachers about being hit and starved, Birmingham Crown Court heard.
In one text sent on February 1 2012 – just weeks before his death – Luczak told Krezolek: “You were striking him by the hands, and he’s telling the lady it’s hurting.
“I told him if he stopped with that nonsense I would get him a chocolate bar later.”
In other texts, which were read out to the jury, Luczak told Krezolek to “buy salt as a must”.
She also ordered him to remove Daniel’s door handle to stop him escaping from his room, the court heard.
Prosecutor Jonas Hankin told the court: “On October 7 2011, Magdalena, who would nickname her son ‘Rudy’, sent the following message to Mariusz: ‘We deal with Rudy after school, he won’t see grub at all. I’m going home now.’
“Another message from October 21 2011, from Mariusz to Magdelena read: ‘When you’re going to the shop remove Rudy’s door handle so no one can open the door for him.’
“Magdalena sent Mariusz a message on the same day saying: ‘Buy salt as a must, if you have enough money then sugar as well.'”
Daniel, who was so badly starved he weighed just 1.5 stone – 15lbs below average – was found by horrified paramedics with a head injury on March 3 last year.
Earlier in the trial the court heard his levels of emaciation were like those seen in parts of Africa and his BMI (Body Mass Index) was too low to even register on the scale.
Despite being rushed to University Hospital Coventry doctors were unable to resuscitate him and he was pronounced dead.
Detective Constable Jason Brewster, a computer investigator for West Midlands Police, told the court on Thursday how the polish couple had frantically searched the internet as Daniel lay dying.
He said: “Between 11.20am and 12.16pm (on March 2 the day before Daniel died) several searches were made on the computer at Daniel’s house.
“On more than one occasion they searched terms like ‘What to do when a child has swallowed too much table salt’ and ‘table salt overdose.’
“They also searched ‘What to do when a child isn’t responding’ and ‘what to do when a child is sleeping and won’t wake up.'”
Mr Hankin told the court the internet searches had all been deleted between March 3 and March 5 last year.
Among the Google entries, which had to be translated from polish to English, were ‘How to oxygenate at home’ and ‘Symptoms for water in the lungs.’
Mr Hankin read out further messages between the couple which refer to the tragic tot’s injuries.
On February 2 last year, just a month before Daniel died, Luczak texted Krezolek saying: “His hand is livid blue, what am I supposed to do now?”
She later sent another message to him saying: “I won’t be hitting him but if
“I hear him wake up later then he’s going back in the bath tub. I didn’t let the water out.”
On March 2 last year, the day before Daniel’s dead body was found covered in over 20 bruises, she texted Krezolek again, saying: “He’ll get over it by tomorrow, there is no point stressing.
“We can’t call an ambulance because that will cause more problems.”
The trial continues.
