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The stepfather of a five-year-old girl has pleaded guilty to her murder.

Nadia Zofia Kalinowska died after being found injured at her family home at Fernagh Drive in Newtownabbey in December 2019.

Her mother, 28 year-old Aleksandra Wahab, and the child's stepfather, 34-year-old Abdul Wahab, went on trial on Wednesday at Belfast Crown Court, accused of murder.

When the case resumed on Thursday, Abdul Wahab pleaded guilty to murder.

The Pakistani national also pleaded guilty to two charges of grievous bodily harm with intent 24 hours before the child's death and on other occasions between July and December that year.

The judge, Mr Justice O'Hara, sentenced Wahab to life imprisonment.

A minimum period, before he can be released, will be set at a future date.

The trial had been told the schoolgirl was tortured and killed in her home - a place where she should have felt safe.

During the opening, Crown barrister Liam McCollum detailed the injuries inflicted on Nadia.

As well as suffering a skull fracture and lacerated liver which caused her death, Nadia had sustained fractures and re-fractures to her ribs, a fractured collarbone, a fractured pelvis and an injury to her bowel.

Also present at Nadia's time of death were 70 surface injuries including bruising and abrasions.

This led the Crown to conclude that Nadia had been subjected to a campaign of physical abuse in the family home which culminated in her death.

As the hearing was due to resume on Thursday, barristers for both Mr and Mrs Wahab asked that their clients be re-arraigned.

At this point Abdul Wahab bowed his head and tearfully pleaded guilty to the murder.

Aleksandra Wahab pleaded guilty to allowing the death of a child and allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm.

These pleas were accepted by the court and the jury was discharged.

She was remanded back into custody.

Addressing the jury of seven men and five woman, the judge said that as both defendants had now pleaded guilty to three charges each, he directed them to return not guilty verdicts on all the remaining counts.

Nadia was a P1 student at St James's Primary School, Newtownabbey.

A spokesperson for the school said: "Our school community is still in shock at this terrible tragedy. We have lost Nadia who was a much loved pupil.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those impacted at this time."