Klevi and Nivalda Santos Pirjani were said to have ‘systematically abused’ their infant child Miguel before his death at the age of 13 weeks
Nivalda Santos Pirjani and Klevi Pirjani were found guilty of murdering their baby son Miguel Pirjani(Image: Merseyside Police)
These are the faces of a couple who have been found guilty of murdering their own baby son. Klevi and Nivalda Santos Pirjani have been on trial at Liverpool Crown Court charged with the murder of their infant child Miguel Pirjani, who died aged 13 weeks in November last year.
The mum and dad were accused of “systematically abusing” their baby before his death, at which stage he was found to have suffered numerous broken bones and a bleed on the brain. The two sought to blame each other for their son’s death, with the mum even alleging the dad “lost control” and headbutted the youngster.
But both were unanimously convicted of Miguel’s murder this afternoon, Wednesday. Each defendant was seen to be in tears in the dock as the verdict was returned, as were the jury of six men and six women.
Nivalda Pirjani had previously admitted the lesser charge of allowing or causing the death of a child. They will now be sentenced at a later date, with Mr Justice Baker, who presided over the trial, further remanding them into custody.
Merseyside Police have now released custody pictures of the Pirjanis. Detective Inspector Holly Chance, the senior investigating officer in the case, said following today’s verdict: “This was a truly shocking murder of baby Miguel Pirjani, and it has been an extremely distressing case for us to investigate.
“Miguel was only three months old when his life was tragically cut short at the violent hands of his parents. Today’s conviction of Klevi and Nivalda is exceptionally heart breaking, as Miguel lost his life tragically by his own parents who were meant to nurture and protect him from harm.”
Nivalda Santos Pirjani was found guilty of murdering her baby son Miguel Pirjani(Image: Merseyside Police)
The ECHO previously reported that Klevi Pirjani called 999 shortly before midday on November 24 2024 to report that Miguel was unresponsive. Peter Wright KC, prosecuting, told the court: “He told the operator that Miguel just stopped breathing.
“Curiously, he referred to his son as it. It just stopped breathing. It is a matter for you to consider in due course as to whether this was a product of distress on his part, a language barrier or an unintended indication of his attitude towards Miguel.”
Emergency services attended the family home on Percy Road in Seacombe, Wirral, “within minutes” and found the baby in cardiac arrest. While paramedics were able to recover a pulse, he was subsequently taken to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in an “extremely serious” condition.
Doctors subsequently discovered that Miguel had sustained bruising on the left side of his head, while a CT scan found a fissure to his skull and bleeding on the brain, in addition to fractures to his right collarbone, left upper arm and left shin. These broken bones were said to have been of varying age, with Mr Wright saying of this: “The inevitable conclusion to be drawn from the injuries was that Miguel had been subjected to a course of conduct in which serious and obvious injuries had been sustained.”
Miguel remained in an unconscious state over the coming days, although his injuries were ultimately found to be “irreversible”. He remained on life support until November 29 2024, when he died following the removal of artificial ventilation.
Mr Wright continued during his opening: “At the time of his passing, his mother was permitted to hold his hand. Whilst present, she was heard to say ‘I should have protected you’.”
A post mortem examination later revealed further injuries, including retinal haemorrhages, displaced skull bones, bleeding on both sides of the brain, bleeding around the cervical cord and a fatal hypoxic ischaemic brain injury. Under interview, Nivalda Pirjani gave a prepared statement to detectives in which she described Klevi as being abusive and violent.
The 34-year-old added that she did not blame her partner for Miguel’s injuries but said “she was frightened of him and feared what he may do”. She also went on to repeat her claim that her husband was the one responsible for looking after Miguel.
But Mr Wright said of this account: “We say her account is a fiction, calculated to conceal her own involvement in these events and to infer that any responsibility for the injuries sustained by Miguel and his death are the sole responsibility of her partner Klevi. We say they were in it together from the start.”
When he was questioned, Klevi Pirjani disputed Nivalda’s claims and said that no concerns had been raised during previous appointments with healthcare professionals. The 37-year-old also queried whether Miguel’s rib fractures could have been caused by resuscitation efforts.
Klevi Pirjani was found guilty of murdering his baby son Miguel Pirjani(Image: Merseyside Police)
Mr Wright added: “The evidence demonstrates that the injuries to Miguel’s ribs were of varying ages. Some had been inflicted in advance of the 24th of November. Any fractures later found were, in the opinion of the Home Office forensic pathologist, not consistent with CPR. Each of the injuries found, whether fatal or non-fatal, were, in his professional opinion, non-accidental in origin.
“We say that Miguel was systematically physically abused by his parents. They caused him really serious non-fatal injury with intent so to do. They caused or allowed his death.”
In her evidence, Nivalda Pirjani told the court that she met her husband and co-defendant online in 2014, when she was living in Kirkby and he was residing in Birmingham, before they moved in together in 2016. But she said: “I’ve always been scared of Klevi. I was scared of Klevi trying to do something to me, because Klevi can be violent, aggressive, lose control. He [would] give a slap and beat me, on the face and on my body.”
Asked whether she had previously tried to leave the relationship, Pirjani said: “Klevi stopped me all the time. Shouting, frightening, scaring me. I just tried to run away from the house. He tried to be aggressive with me, lost control, shouting and tried to beat me as well.”
Miguel was then born on August 27 2024 and spent the first six weeks of his life in hospital due to medical issues. Pirjani went on to detail how she had attempted to breastfeed her son but he “didn’t take it”, and that he was instead fed by bottle and tube.
While she stated that the latter was the “best way to try and feed him”, Klevi reportedly “didn’t like it, because he wanted Miguel fed by bottle like a normal baby”. She also recalled that her husband would “get angry” if Miguel was struggling to feed and, on occasion, would “probably give a slap on Miguel or bang his head on Miguel”.
Pirjani described how Klevi had slapped the baby on his back with “very strong” force or hit his head “by head by head”. Of an incident two days after Miguel was discharged from his initial stay in hospital, she added: “Miguel didn’t take the milk like Klevi wanted. Klevi got angry and lost control and held Miguel by hips and banged Miguel on the bed on the floor at lot of times. I ran to stop Klevi. Then Klevi left and he came back, and he kicked Miguel on the left side of his hips.”
Asked what she had done to intervene, Pirjani replied: “I just stopped Klevi. I didn’t do nothing because I was scared of Klevi. I just took Miguel from his hands, pushed Klevi away.”
Klevi Pirjani meanwhile told the jury of they had had a “good relationship, very strong” and denied being violent or controlling towards his wife. The former chef and digger driver went on to describe himself as “the best dad in the world”, saying of the moment that he learned he was going to have a son: “It was a dream for me. My Miguel.”
His counsel Sarah Vine KC put to him Nivalda’s claims that he had assaulted Miguel when he was struggling to feed, but he said: “No, that’s not true. How can I harm my son? Never can I harm my son.”
The defence silk subsequently put to him: “Mr Pirjani, the injuries to your baby son were extensive, devastating and fatal. Did you cause any of those injuries?”
Pirjani then appeared to become emotional as he responded: “How can I harm my son? I never would do that. I love my son so much. My blood, you know. I cared for him, the best treatment for him. I loved him so much.”
In cross-examination, Mr Bowers detailed how Pirjani had previously stood trial before the same court accused of a violent offence in 2016. He had denied this charge but was ultimately convicted by a jury.
And Pirjani conceded: “I was lying. That was 10 years ago. I was very young at the time. I did not say the truth.”
Asked who he had “blamed for it”, Pirjani replied: “I can’t remember details, I think I said Nivalda I can’t remember the evidence that Nivalda gave. I didn’t tell Nivalda what to say.”
Having been accused of being “quite prepared to have his wife lie” on his behalf, Pirjani responded: “Why should I prepare my wife to lie for me? I didn’t say to Nivalda what to say. I didn’t say anything to Nivalda.”
Asked who had caused the injuries that led to Miguel’s death, Pirjani said “I don’t know”. He also said he had not “seen them being caused”, before Mr Bowers put to him: “If it wasn’t you, Mr Pirjani, then who was it?”
Pirjani replied “Nivalda” before adding “I didn’t see”. Mr Bowers continued: “You can’t quite bring yourself to tell that last lie, can you? You did not see, so you say, Nivalda commit any assault on Miguel. And yet you are blaming her, aren’t you?”
But Pirjani said “no, I’m not blaming her”. When Mr Bowers asked “who are you blaming then, who did it?”, he responded: “I don’t know. I haven’t seen. I never seen those injuries. What can I say, if I never seen those injuries? I didn’t do it.”
Mr Bowers went on to reference a text message, sent from Klevi Pirjani to Nivalda Pirjani prior to Miguel’s death, in which he said “I’m feeding your bishe”. While the defendant maintained that the final word meant “hero” in Albanian, it was put to him: “It means monster. It means beast. I’m feeding your beast.”
Pirjani however said “no, that’s not true”. Mr Bowers then alleged that he “didn’t like the fact that Miguel was born with abnormalities and difficulties” to which he replied: “How can you say I didn’t like Miguel if I never missed an appointment? How didn’t I care for my son?”
Mr Bowers then said: “You cared so well for your son that you have no idea how he came by 41 fractures and suffered a fatal blow to the head. Is that right?”
Pirjani responded: “I don’t know where his injuries came from. Of course I loved my son. I did love my son. I loved him.”
Nivalda Pirjani’s account that her partner had “headbutted their son at 3 in the morning” was then put to him, but he said “no, that’s not true”. Asked whether his wife had “made it up”, Klevi Pirjani stated: “I don’t know sir. That’s not true. She’s lying, yeah.”
Concluding his questioning, Mr Bowers said: “You caused all of those injuries to your son, didn’t you? It was you that got frustrated with your son again on the morning of the 24th of November and you did it again, didn’t you?”
Pirjani responded: “No, never. No. Nivalda was there. How can I harm my son, sir? How can I harm my son? I never harmed my son. No, I never harmed my son sir.”