A Nigerian caregiver, Bilikesu Olagunju, was caught on hidden camera violently mistreating a frail 88-year-old dementia patient in his UK home, just a day before he was found unresponsive and later died in hospital.
The shocking CCTV footage, filmed on Christmas Eve 2022 at John Attard’s residence in Bexley, Kent, shows Olagunju dragging the elderly man across the floor, stripping him, threatening violence, and ignoring his repeated cries of pain. “Maybe I will beat you up. I will flog you. I will take you to the GP to get injections. I will call the police on you,” she said during the 45-minute ordeal, reports DailyMail.
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Olagunju, 42, who had been on the job just six days with care agency Unique Personnel UK, pleaded guilty at Woolwich Crown Court to one count of ill-treating or wilfully neglecting an individual in her care. She was sentenced to six weeks in prison, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to complete 50 hours of unpaid work.
The next morning, Mr Attard was discovered unresponsive by his son, Chris, with blood dripping down the side of his face. He was rushed to hospital but never regained consciousness, dying 10 days later. Although a post-mortem could not confirm direct causation, his family believes the trauma hastened his death.
“If those cameras had not been there, that person could still be out there treating elderly people like this,” said Chris Attard. “I was expecting a suspended sentence, but the length and community service aspect is an insult. What kind of a deterrent is that?”
The court reviewed a breakdown of the footage, which began with Olagunju arriving at 11:20 a.m. to bathe Mr Attard and prepare breakfast. She is seen shouting at him to stand, stripping him in view of the street, and dragging him by the collar and arm.
At one point, she calls her employer to report that Mr Attard is on the floor and is advised not to move him but to call an ambulance. She ignores this and continues to haul him up, complaining “a man” should have been sent for the task.
Olagunju is also seen pouring marmalade into Mr Attard’s coffee despite his diabetes, removing his table and spilling hot coffee on him. Throughout, he pleads: “You are hurting me.” She responds: “Me, I’ll flog you, flog you,” and again: “Maybe I’ll beat you up. I’ll flog you. Take you to hospital, take you to GP to give injections and police.”
Chris Attard described his father’s face during the abuse as “distorted” with discomfort and pain. “She is physically trying to lift him like a rag doll. His face indicates the discomfort and pain he is feeling,” he told the court. “She lifts him off the floor, dragging him toward his armchair. He tells her: ‘My head is banging.’”
