The ‘model pupil’ whose smile hid an unimaginable pain: How 15-year-old Polish student Sebastian was fast learning English and making friends after less than a year at UK school… before his brutal murder at the hands of torturing mother and partner
- Sebastian Kalinowski, 15, died after being subjected to vile abuse and torture by his mother and her partner
- Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, and Andrzej Latoszewski, 38, have been found guilty of murdering him
- Sebastian was beaten, whipped and ‘humiliated’ by the pair, he died from sepsis caused by broken ribs
- His school described him as a ‘model pupil’ who was keen to improve and had become more confident
A 15-year-old Polish student who tragically died after suffering a campaign of abuse at the hands of his torturing mother and her partner was today described as a ‘model pupil’ and was fast learning English and making friends after less than a year at a UK school.
‘Model pupil’ Sebastian Kalinowski was beaten, tortured and killed by his mother Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, and her partner Andrezej Latoszewski, 38. He died in August 2021 in Huddersfield from organ failure, as a result of sepsis brought on by multiple untreated broken ribs.
A jury at Leeds Crown Court heard that Sebastian was beaten with a plank of wood, whipped with an extension cable and stabbed with a needle by his mother and her partner. He was also force fed food and drink and then had to carry out extreme exercise for merely dropping crumbs on his bedroom floor, or even having gone to the toilet at night.
On Friday, July 22, his mother and her partner were both convicted of murder following a trial at Leeds Crown Court.
The couple claimed they punished Sebastian for lying, failing to do his homework and not attending North Huddersfield Trust School (NHTS).
His school has paid tribute to the ‘caring’ and ‘charming’ boy, who had been in England for less than a year after moving from Poland.
However headteacher Andrew Fell paid tribute to the boy who joined his school in October 2020, who he says staff viewed as a ‘model student’.
Mr Fell said he spoke very little English when he arrived, but had grown to be much more confident and had a ‘strong circle of friends’.
Sebastian Kalinowski, 15, (pictured) was a ‘model student’ who was fast learning English and making friends after less than a year at a UK school before his brutal murder at the hands of his torturing mother and her partner
Sebastian Kalinowski was described by his headteacher at North Huddersfield Trust School as ‘caring’, ‘intelligent’ and ‘fun-loving’ (pictured with his classmates
Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, and Andrzej Latoszewski, 38, have been found guilty of murdering 15-year-old Sebastian Kalinowski, who died after a campaign of torture. They have now got engaged while in prison
When Sebastian joined his school he spoken English wasn’t very strong, but his headteacher described how the 15-year-old grew in confidence over the school year
His mother and her partner claimed they punished Sebastian for lying and failing to do his homework, however he was described as a ‘model pupil’
‘It was obvious that he was dedicated to learning and particularly excelled in quizzes that tested knowledge of different topics designed to help his integration into school in a new country,’ Mr Fell said.
‘Too many beautiful moments we’ve lived through’: Vile love letters shared by killer mother and partner reveal pair got ENGAGED while awaiting trial for torture and murder her 15-year-old son
The jury previously heard Kalinowska has accepted a marriage proposal from Latoszewski while in prison awaiting trial.
In letters read to court Kalinowska wrote ‘Yes, yes, yes’ when her lover proposed from his jail cell. She said she would marry her partner: ‘Anywhere. Even in a tracksuit. I don’t need a wedding dress’.
Despite being in prison before being guilty of killing her own son, she said: ‘Too many beautiful moments we’ve lived through. Too many years together to be forgotten.
‘Each night I go to sleep and I look at the sky know you are somewhere far away. Keep your head up, be strong. Remember you’ve got me. I am yours forever’.
The headteacher added that Sebastian used Google Translate to communicate with others in his class and taught his teacher the Polish for ‘good morning’.
‘It became a daily ritual for his form tutor to greet Sebastian in Polish, to which his response would be a polite smile and a nod, followed by the correct pronunciation,’ he said.
He said Sebastian was particularly good at maths and was ‘incredibly keen to consistently improve and to show what he was capable of achieving’.
‘Caring, intelligent and fun-loving, he will be remembered for his charming smile, his sharp sense of humour and his kindness.
‘He embodied what our school stands for in demonstrating a positive attitude to school, treating others with respect and showing a determination to make the most of his education.
‘Our close-knit school community is deeply saddened by the loss of Sebastian.’
During the trial a jury at Leeds Crown Court heard that Sebastian was beaten with a bed slat, whipped with an extension cable and stabbed with a needle by his mother and her partner. He was also force fed food and drink and then had to carry out extreme exercise for merely dropping crumbs on his bedroom floor, or even having gone to the toilet at night.
After the couple were arrested in connection with Sebastian’s death, police seized CCTV cameras from their house in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, which prosecutors said had been installed partly to ‘monitor and exert control over Sebastian remotely’.
On the day before his death, Latoszewski was seen on the CCTV ‘forcing food and drink into Sebastian’s mouth’ and ‘stabbing him a number of times’ with a needle in the groin and thigh, ‘apparently laughing whilst he did so’.
Sebastian was found unconscious by paramedics at a house in West Yorkshire on Friday August 13, 2021. He did not survive having been out cold for almost three hours before help arrived.
A court heard Sebastian had suffered multiple injuries, including open wounds to his buttocks and numerous rib fractures, which the prosecution said caused the complications which led to his death.
Kalinowska previously admitted child cruelty, while Latoszewski, a body builder and martial arts fanatic, admitted manslaughter, but both had denied murder.
However, they were both today convicted of Sebastian’s murder by a jury following after a five-week trial at Leeds Crown Court.
Sebastian, pictured in his school uniform, suffered a campaign of ‘torture’ that ended his murder by his sadistic mother and step father
Their crimes were revealed by ‘horrifying’ CCTV footage from the couple’s home in Huddersfield (pictured), which the prosecution said was installed to monitor Sebastian
Jurors had previously been shown ‘horrifying’ CCTV footage from the couple’s home, which the prosecution said was installed to monitor Sebastian.
Videos showed numerous incidents in which Sebastian was repeatedly punched, kicked and stamped on. In one video, he was shown being whipped with a cable.
The judge, Mrs Justice Lambert DBE, took the unusual step of discharging all jurors from future jury service due to the nature of the evidence they had sat through.
Addressing the jury, she said: ‘Your commitment and your dedication to this case has been truly extraordinary, it really has.
‘You have had to endure quite horrifying footage of Sebastian suffering great pain over a period of time and then his death.
‘May I thank you personally for all of your hard work, dedication and patience over the last six or so weeks.’
Jason Pitter QC, prosecuting, previously told the court Sebastian suffered ‘weeks, if not months of terrible, cruel, systematic assaults and ill treatment, neglect and abuse’.
The judge deferred sentencing on the pair, both of Leeds Road in Huddersfield, until October at the earliest.
The court heard Sebastian came to Huddersfield in October 2020, with teaching staff describing him as ‘a pleasant and well-mannered boy’ who ‘was observed to be quiet and timid, and at times appeared sad’.
Prosecutor Jason Pitter QC said: ‘In the very early stages it would appear that, at least for Kalinowska, she was glad that her son was here with her. She was described by a friend as being ‘smitten’.
‘If that was correct, that was unfortunately to change rapidly.’
He told jurors that by New Year’s Eve the defendants’ attitude was that Sebastian was ‘something of a hindrance’ and they spoke about him being a liar and playing truant from school.
Mr Pitter told jurors: ‘You may conclude that these were attempts to justify what they would present as a need for Sebastian’s ‘punishments’.
‘The punishments, if that is an appropriate way to describe them, were by any stretch of the imagination cruel and became increasingly more severe and violent over time.’
Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, denied manslaughter but admitted she ‘failed as a mother’. The court heard Andrzej Latoszewski, 38, was ‘controlling’ and abusive, and that he violently attacked Sebastian multiple times. Both face jail
The couple initially claimed their victim had accidentally drowned in the bath. Kalinowska then blamed her gym bunny lover
Agnieszka Kalinowska, 35, and Andrzej Latoszewski, 38, appeared at Leeds Crown Court where they are now guilty of murder
Cruelty of sadistic couple who should have cared for and loved Sebastian, 15
Kalinowska and Latoszewski inflicted mental abuse by shouting derogatory insults at Sebastian in an effort to control and humiliate him.
Latoszewski insisted Sebastian address him as ‘Mr’ or ‘Sir’.
When emergency services were eventually called to the house, Sebastian had been unconscious for two and a half hours, the CPS said.
He was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead. Latoszewski suggested variously that Sebastian had drowned in the bath, had fallen from a tree, and had been in a fight.
Sebastian, who had just turned 15, had been in the UK for less than a year. He was described by his teachers as a model pupil, meticulous, punctual and well-mannered.
Daniel Lee, Senior Crown Prosecutor, from the CPS said: ‘Agniewska Kalinowska and Andresz Latoszewski were the two people Sebastian should have been able to trust the most in the world. But instead of loving, protecting and caring for Sebastian, they subjected him to an utterly horrific and prolonged campaign of extreme physical and mental abuse.
‘In short, they tortured him. After suffering many months of mental and physical torment, Sebastian died of the multiple injuries he sustained at their hands. Both defendants lied and offered cowardly and implausible explanations for the extent of Sebastian’s injuries, and attempted to pass it off as ‘appropriate discipline’.
‘It is impossible to contemplate the agony and fear this young boy experienced, inflicted in his own home, by his supposed care-givers.
‘The defendants are now facing very many years in prison. Our thoughts remain with Sebastian’s other relatives and we sincerely hope the successful outcome of this case will bring them some comfort.’
He said: ‘It would appear that the punishments were precipitated by things such as Sebastian merely dropping food on his bedroom floor, or even just having gone to the toilet during the night.’
Jurors heard that from January 2021, ‘the disciplining of Sebastian became progressively harsh’ and that he was ‘kept deliberately out of the way of others, either as part of the system of punishment or to hide the abuse.’
Mr Pitter said emergency services were called to the defendants’ house by Latoszewski on August 13 ‘after Sebastian had been unconscious for some two and a half hours’.
He told jurors Latoszewski said he had found Sebastian in the bath with his head under water, ‘suggesting perhaps that he had drowned’.
The court heard that an examination of Sebastian revealed injuries including bruising to his buttocks, forehead, jaw, abdomen, arms and legs, and multiple rib fractures.
Mr Pitter said: ‘[The defendants’] telephones were seized and that installed CCTV system was interrogated.
‘Together, their contents document the catalogue of abuse that Sebastian had endured before his death.
‘A broad description is one of Sebastian being attacked, principally and most severely by Latoszewski, but with his mother being involved at various times.
‘It included messages and recordings of conversations which have the defendants speaking of and to Sebastian in the most derogatory and inhuman ways, in the context of a perceived need to punish him.
‘That included forcing him to undertake physical and humiliating drills, even when he was too weak to really do so.’
Footage played to jurors included Latoszewski beating Sebastian’s buttocks with what, Mr Pitter said, appears to have been a slat from a bed.
Further clips included Latoszewski making Sebastian do exercises and whipping him with an extension cable to ‘spur him on’.
Mr Pitter said video from Latoszewski phone also contained clips of him ‘verbally abusing’ a ‘visibly upset’ Sebastian.
On August 10 last year, Mr Pitter said, CCTV showed violence towards Sebastian starting at 8.15am and continuing until ‘at least’ 4.10pm.
He could be seen ‘frequently struggling to stand but [being] picked or held up in order that the assault could continue,’ jurors heard.
Mr Pitter said on the day before Sebastian’s death, Latoszewski was seen on the CCTV ‘forcing food and drink into Sebastian’s mouth’ and ‘stabbing him a number of times’ with a needle in the groin and thigh, ‘apparently laughing whilst he did so’.
He added that Kalinowska at one point ‘took over stabbing Sebastian with the needle’.
Mr Pitter said the defendants’ telephones and CCTV footage ‘document the catalogue of abuse that Sebastian had endured before his death’.
He said: ‘A broad description is one of Sebastian being attacked, principally and most severely by Latoszewski, but with his mother being involved at various times.
‘It included messages and recordings of conversations which have the defendants speaking of and to Sebastian in the most derogatory and inhuman ways, in the context of a perceived need to punish him.
‘That included forcing him to undertake physical and humiliating drills, even when he was too weak to really do so.’
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