Robert Smith: Accomplice in Kiesha Abrahams’ murder could be released as early as next month

A woman who helped lock up those responsible for the horror murder of six-year-old Kiesha Abrahams in 2013 is now leading the fight to keep those responsible behind bars.

Alison Anderson, who was one of the first people to be at Kristi Abrahams' side after daughter Keisha was reported missing. She supported her up until the point Kristi was arrested for killing Keisha and then became one of her most vocal opponents.

A woman who helped lock up a man who stuffed a murdered six-year-old girl in a suitcase before setting it alight has called for harsher penalties for convicted child killers, as the community braces for the man’s possible release next month.

Robert Smith was sentenced to a minimum jail term of 12 years for manslaughter and being an accessory to murder in 2013, after his then-girlfriend Kristi Abrahams murdered her own daughter, Kiesha Abrahams, after an argument at their Mt Druitt home.

Earlier this month, the NSW State Parole Authority announced that it would review Smith’s parole – which could see him released as early as April 21 – at a public hearing, following expert advice from the Serious Offenders Review Council and Community Corrections.

Former family friend and children's campaigner Alison Anderson said news of Smith’s parole bid had been devastating for the community.

“No one will ever forget what happened. It has scarred everyone,” she said. “We feel very strongly and very deeply that Smith should not get parole.”

Six-year-old Kiesha was beaten to death by her mother after she refused to put on her pyjamas. Picture: Supplied

Ms Anderson lived across from the young family shortly before Kiesha’s death in 2010.

Her daughter, who was of a similar age, used to play with six-year-old Kiesha.

“One day, Kiesha turned to my daughter and said: ‘Can you be my big sister’,” Mr Anderson said. “Kiesha had the most gorgeous, cheeky smile and big brown eyes – I will never forget that.”

Rob Smith and Kristi Abrahams pictured in 2010, prior to revelations of their role in Kiesha’s death.

In the weeks after Kiesha’s death, Ms Anderson said she harboured suspicions about the young couple.

The couple famously made impassioned pleas to the public, triggering large-scale searches of western Sydney suburbs.

But, following disclosures by Ms Anderson to investigators, Smith and Abrahams were arrested by NSW Police about eight months later.

In court, it was revealed Abrahams had knocked her daughter unconscious for refusing to put on her pyjamas, before being placed in bed.

Her body was later hidden in a suitcase and stored inside the house by the pair for several days before being taken to bushland.

There, Kiesha’s body was covered in petrol and set alight before being buried in a shallow grave dug with a hammer.

Alison Anderson speaks to media. Picture: John Grainger

More than a decade later, Ms Anderson said too many children were still being murdered and that more needed to be done.

Ms Anderson, who runs the All Little Angels Taken Too Soon campaign, joined others in protesting Smith’s parole this week.

The social media page grew out of the widely spread “A Voice for Kiesha” campaign, which has more than 3000 followers on Facebook. It seeks to raise awareness for children who have been killed, and to help co-ordinate protest action in the community.

And, with more action planned before the public hearing, Ms Anderson said the campaign had grown into a search for “justice for all angels”.

“We have a law system that works for shoplifting, bashings, and other things, but not for taking a life,” she said. “If you don’t tell police where the body is, you should not get release. Ever. A life for a life.”

Smith will appear before the parole authority for a public hearing on April 4.

Abrahams is currently serving a minimum jail term of 16 years.