An abusive father has been branded one of the ‘worst’ killers a detective has encountered after killing his own three-week-old baby.
Denis Beytula was so jealous of the attention his young son Andrei was receiving from his mother that he brutally stabbed him as he lay in his own cot. During the horrific attack, he also attacked his wife and baby’s mother, Andreea Stefan.
Five years after the horrific murder, our colleagues at Chronicle Live have revisited the case. You can read Sophie Doughty’s report below.
READ NEXT: Homicide detectives extend international manhunt to Spain with £20,000 reward on offer
He should have loved and protected her more than anyone else. However, the evil Denis Beytula killed his own little son because he was jealous of the attention the newborn received from his mother.
In a crime that sent ripples of fear across Tyneside, Beytula’s controlling fatally stabbed his three-week-old son Andrei as he lay in his cot five years ago today. The man, then 27, also stabbed his partner and baby’s mother, Andreea Stefan, during a terrifying fit of rage at the home they shared in Wallsend, Howdon.
Andreea survived but baby Andrei died in hospital four days later. Beytula was sentenced to life imprisonment after pleading guilty to murder and attempted murder. And today, on the fifth anniversary of the most horrific of crimes, we take a look at the murder and the almost unimaginable motive behind it.
To the outside world, Beytula may seem like a loving partner to his pregnant girlfriend and an excited father-to-be. But behind the closed doors of their home, Wallsend was a jealous, controlling and manipulative tyrant.
After Andreea gave birth to the couple’s first son, Beytula became jealous of the attention the little boy was receiving from his mother, rather than caring for the helpless newborn. And his evil jealousy exploded one afternoon in October 2019, with deadly results.
After an argument over where Andreea would get her hair done, the crooked new dad grabbed a kitchen knife and stabbed their young son Andrei as he slept in Moses’ basket, stabbing his partner multiple times. Newcastle Crown Court heard how Beytula’s resentment towards her baby became clear soon after Andrei was born.
Prosecutor Nick Dry explained how Beytula showed a “lack of interest and even distance from his son” and how his “lack of paternal love and affection determined the course of his son’s short life”. When the new family returned home from the hospital, Beytula became angry with the baby and her partner, once strangling him and convinced that he was planning to leave her for another man.
Chillingly, he threatened that he would kill them both before they let this happen. The night before the murder, Andreea threatened Beytula with a knife after he had sexual intercourse with Andreea, but after Andreea started crying, Andreea went to tend to the baby, the court heard.
The next day he went out and returned home in a violent rage. After threatening to kill herself, Beytula stood over Andrei’s basket and stabbed him in front of Andreea. He then stabbed his partner, stabbing him multiple times.
Takeaway worker Beytula then left the couple’s home and called 999. Audio of the chilling call was released following the murderer’s sentencing. Beytula’s lack of remorse, too, was clearly evident in her voice: “I just killed my baby and my wife.”
Beytula’s arrest was captured on police officers’ body-worn cameras. When the police arrive at the scene, Beytula, who has blood on her hands, calmly directs the police to the apartment. When asked if his partner is still alive, he says in a careless tone: “I don’t know.”
The detective who brought the tyrant to justice after he was imprisoned for at least 23 years has explained why he believes he is the worst killer he has encountered in his police career. Detective Inspector Graeme Dodds, of Northumbria Police, later told the Chronicle: “He was jealous of his own son.
“He killed his own son because he was jealous, and he tried to take the life of his partner, the mother of his child. He was jealous of his son because Andreea loved him, and Andreea was jealous that he loved someone more than her.
“I have been a police officer for 20 years and this is not only the worst case I have ever had to investigate, I would say he is the worst criminal I have ever encountered. Taking the life of a three week old baby in his own cot in his own home where he should have been safe makes him the worst individual I have ever had to investigate.”
It was learned that Andreea, a manager at Dominos Pizza, met Beytula through her colleagues and their relationship started in August 2018. The court was told how Beytula became obsessed with her partner and was jealous and insecure throughout the relationship.
She insisted on having access to her phone and criticized her for having boyfriends on Facebook. When Andreea was invited to the business awards ceremony in London, Beytula stopped her from going.
The court heard that when Andreea became pregnant, Beytula did not realize that she had lost interest in sex and instead became even more insecure and angry, taking away the gifts he had given her. But Beytula was so manipulative that no one could see how dangerous she truly was until it was too late.
While the couple was eagerly awaiting the arrival of their first child, Beytula presented the image of a father-to-be who was very fond of the outside world; This meant that no one could notice the ruthless control he exerted over Andreea behind closed doors. After seeing her son’s murderer jailed, Andreea made a bold statement explaining how Beytula controlled her mind.
She said: “I have spent every second of my life since then looking for reasons that could have made the outcome different. I blamed myself for not leaving Denis sooner, but only those in a controlling relationship can understand why.”
“He made me feel that I couldn’t find anyone better and that no one else could be a father to our son. He manipulated me and told me everything he did was for love. But now I know that what he has for me is not love. “Love doesn’t try to control you, love doesn’t threaten you, and love doesn’t kill babies.”
Read more of today’s top stories here