THE family of a woman who was murdered by her husband during a Boxing Day attack believe her race and gender impacted the way she was treated by agencies when she tried to seek help.

Angela Mittal was 41 years old when she was stabbed almost 60 times by her partner Laurens Brand on December 26, 2018.

Brands, of Parker Close, Shinfield, admitted the murder at Reading Crown Court and was jailed for a minimum of 16 years and eight months the following May.

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An inquest is now being held into Angela’s death in order for a coroner to consider the response of agencies prior to her death and the safeguarding concerns her family has.

Reading Chronicle: Angela MittalAngela Mittal (Image: Family handout)

At a pre-inquest review on Wednesday (November 1) at Berkshire Coroner’s Court, a lawyer representing the family stated that there are concerns that Angela’s race and gender impacted the way she was treated by Thames Valley police.

The court heard Angela had called police on November 29 after Brands had punched her and she later saw a solicitor on December 3 to discuss a divorce.

Her family’s lawyer told the pre-inquest said that one officer allegedly described her as ‘weird’ to Wokingham Borough Council.

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He said: “Thames Valley Police [have their own] concerns about their officers response to Angela’s reports.

“They indicated there was an inadequate response by their front-line officers to understand what was being reported.

“Why that happened is a concern to this inquest. It may be this happened because of a lack of training or involves making a mistake or involves incompetence.

“It may suggest that nothing was wrong…but one credible explanation as to why they didn’t respond adequately was because of her gender and race.

“If their response had been adequate it’s arguable the outcome may have been different.”

The pre-inquest also heard that Angela had admitted to nursery staff that she was being abused and the family would like the coroner to question why staff did not raise any concerns after these disclosures.

A full jury inquest is due to take place at the same court on July 15, 2024.

Brands will be contacted by the coroner service to ask if he would like to be considered an interested person in the case, despite family protests.

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The then 47-year-old called 999 minutes after he violently stabbed Angela in the neck and chest. He said he had used two different knives.

There were 59 wounds in total, 11 to the head and neck, 20 to the torso, and 28 to the upper arms.

Sentencing Brands, Judge Heather Norton described the attack as ‘ferocious’.