'Disgusting and rotting' smell at caravan of couple who buried boy in Birmingham garden

The remains of three-year-old Abiyah Yasharahyalah were discovered in a Handsworth garden in December 2022. It is believed he was buried there in January 2020

Police encountered a 'disgusting and rotting' smell at the caravan of a couple who had buried their dead son in a Birmingham garden more than 100 miles away, a court heard. Jurors were shown bodyworn camera footage of officers confronting Tai-zamarai and Naiyahmi Yasharahyalah in Glastonbury, in December 2022, a few days before the remains of three-year-old Abiyah were discovered in Handsworth.

PC Amanda Thomas, from Avon and Somerset Police, confirmed she attended their caravan with colleagues and a social worker over welfare concerns, following the granting of a court order by a judge. She told the court: "The caravan was in quite a poor state of repair.

"From my initial attendance, looking at the caravan from outside, I could see a chimney on the top with no smoke coming out indicating there was no fire inside. It was absolutely freezing cold. My concern straight away was how warm the caravan would be, if anyone was living inside the caravan."

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PC Thomas added: "There was quite a disgusting smell. It smelled like a mixture of rotting vegetables and urine. There was a very strong and very unhealthy smell as I entered."

The officer's camera footage was played to the court which captured a social worker explaining the purpose of the visit to Tai-zamarai. The defendant was heard to protest and say 'you are violating my human rights' and 'we are travellers we are not contracted to your system'.

After an officer warned Tai-zamarai he would be 'forcibly removed' unless he cooperated he replied: "Attack me, assault me, do what you want. I have a bad back."

An officer told him 'we believe someone is seriously harmed in here or worse' before a colleague was heard to say 'let's go in we're not going to sit here and talk about it'. As Tai-zamarai was pulled from the caravan he shouted out in apparent pain and repeated 'my back, my back'.

Officers then approached Naiyahmi who shouted 'I'm not contracted to you, I've renounced my citizenship'. She also said: "Leave my private, personal space. Don't come into my space. I'm an indigenous person of this facility. Leave now. Leave now."

The footage was paused and PC Thomas said: "Once I entered there was a small kitchen area. The sink was piled high with dirty, unwashed dishes. Lots of vegetables.

"The floor was very cluttered. I had to stand over items to get to the bed or sofa where Naiyahmi was at the end. It was extremely cluttered. It was hard to walk through without tripping on items on the floor."

As the footage resumed, Naiyahmi was heard to accuse the officers of 'violating' and 'trespassing into my territory' as well as 'contradicting my culture, contradicting my heritage, my indigenous right'. She further said: "This is a violation, an act of war. I don't want this."

PC Thomas told the court: "She appeared to be reading a script from a tablet. She tended to be looking at that item and repeating what she was saying to me."

During the incident, Naiyahmi also described herself and her partner as 'aliens and travellers' before she eventually agreed to leave with the officers. PC Thomas said: "When standing up, she was extremely thin and hadn't probably been eating properly. She moved extremely slowly, with difficulty."

The court has previously been told that Abiyah was born in April 2016 and died in January 2000, according to his parents, who did not register for either event. They have claimed they kept his body in their bed for several days hoping he would return before they buried him in the garden at their then home in Clarence Road, Handsworth.

Abiyah's decomposed remains were exhumed on December 14, 2022. Analysis showed evidence of 'severe malnutrition' before death as well as healed broken bones. The prosecution alleges the couple 'prioritised cultural beliefs and practises over their child's welfare with disastrous consequences'.

Tai-zamarai, aged 42, and Naiyahmi, 43, stand trial at Coventry Crown Court where they deny causing or allowing the death of a child, wilful neglect, child cruelty and perverting the course of justice. Proceeding.