“More could have been done” to save Oldbury couple from knife-obsessed killer, says new report

Professionals who handled the case of a West Midlands couple, who were brutally murdered, have come under scrutiny after a report exposed how early warning signs about the knife-obsessed killer were not followed up by authorities.

Jasbir Kaur and Rupinder Singh Bassan – described by family members as “loving, generous and kind-hearted” – were both butchered in their homes in a frenzied attack by Anmol Chana in February 2020.

Chana, aged 25 at the time of the murder, stabbed his mother Jasbir, 52, and his stepfather Bassan, 51, at the couple’s home in Moat Road, Oldbury.

The post-mortem report revealed that both of the tragic parricide victims had suffered over 20 “ferocious” stab wounds at the hands of the remorseless Chana who had “an interest in death, hurting people and animals”.

After the sadistic crime – which police described as “cold-blooded, horrific, and horrendous” – the callous killer reportedly stole money and a car from the couple, drove to a pub where he calmly played pool, met several women and then hired a sex worker.

Chana kept a list of things he was plotting on doing after he had killed his mother and stepfather such as “robbing a Lidl”, getting a new knife, and buying a plane ticket to Italy with the stolen money and fleeing the country.

WMP

An investigation into the appalling crime – which shocked the local community – has found that early warning signs about the killer’s psychosis, his fascination with knives, his chilling threats to kill, and his disturbing bursts of violence prior to the murder were not effectively acted upon by agencies.

The pleas of the family about the danger posed by Chana repeatedly fell on deaf ears. Chana’s mood swings and violent behaviour were known by a long list of people and agencies including teachers in his school days, social workers in his teenage years, and mental health teams and doctors as he grew into adulthood.

A report by the Independent Domestic Homicide Review was published on Thursday by the Safer Sandwell Partnership which stated that mental health professionals failed to “formally assess” Chana who displayed disconcerting signs of psychosis.

The report includes extensive details provided by the family’s health professionals from 2002 until 2020 when the double murder occurred.

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The investigation into the shocking murder has revealed that more could have been done by agencies to address Chana’s violence and the state of his mental health, and that authorities should have followed up family concerns and fears following earlier instances where Chana had been reported to police for physical attacks.

In one shocking text message Chana had threatened to “knife” his mother and “pour boiling oil down her throat, and  put her head in a chip pan”.

Tragically, the long list of alarming threats – which the report states as “clear, explicit threats of violence” – were not put under the spotlight and Chana continued his verbal and physical abuse which eventually culminated in murder.

Chief Superintendent Maria Fox, chair of the Safer Sandwell Partnership, said: “It is clear from the report that, over many years of agencies’ involvement with the perpetrator, more could have been done to address his violent behaviour and poor mental health, while also providing better support to his mother and sister who lived with ongoing fear and anxiety about what he would do next.”