Alameddine crime clan member Ahmed Karim has sentenced extended for killing unborn baby

A Sydney gangster who killed his unborn baby by stomping on his pregnant partner’s stomach in a vicious and targeted attack has had his already-lengthy jail sentence extended on appeal.

Ahmed Karim and his then-partner, Leticia Chalmers, in happier times.

A Sydney gangster who killed his unborn baby by stomping on his pregnant partner’s stomach in a vicious and targeted attack has had his already-lengthy jail sentence extended on appeal.

NSW’s highest court said it was “compelled” to intervene in the case of Alameddine crime clan member Ahmed Karim after prosecutors appealed for an increase to the sentence handed to the 20-year-old, which consisted of a minimum non-parole period of eight years, with a maximum sentence of 12 years.

The Court of Criminal Appeal in December found the original sentence was “manifestly inadequate” given the extreme level of violence perpetrated by Karim against his then-wife, Leticia Chalmers, who was 20-weeks pregnant with their baby girl at the time.

A panel of three judges resentenced Karim to a non-parole period of 10 years — marking a 25 per cent increase — with a new maximum sentence of 15 years.

Leticia Chalmers (left) with her mother Christie Chalmers, outside Parramatta District Court in 2024 before the sentencing of her former partner Ahmed Karim over the assault on her that resulted in the death of her unborn child. Picture: John Appleyard

With time served, he will be eligible to apply for parole in 2031.

Details of the horrific attack, and the lasting emotional and psychological impact on Ms Chalmers, were revealed for the first time in July 2023 when Ms Chalmers waived her right to anonymity and spoke to The Daily Telegraph about her ordeal following Karim’s guilty plea to charges of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and aggravated sexual assault.

She said her decision to speak out was made with her unborn daughter, who she named Adeya, at the forefront of her mind.

“I feel like Adeya deserves the recognition that comes with telling our story … and the crime that was committed deserves to be known too,” she said.

According to court documents, Karim and Ms Chalmers met in high school and had been dating for five years when Ms Chalmers fell pregnant in 2021 at the age of 19.

However, far from being a joyful development, Ms Chalmers said Karim was livid and demanded she get an abortion, telling her “get f**kin rid of it”.

Ms Chalmers sits by her daughter’s grave. She named the baby Adeya. Picture: Jeremy Piper

Ms Chalmers vowed to keep the child and told Karim she would raise the baby on her own, angering him further.

When they met face-to-face in Karim’s home just hours before a planned gender reveal party, Karim launched a vicious attack on Ms Chalmers, throwing her to the ground, jumping on her and kicking her stomach.

“I want you and the baby to die,” he yelled as he repeatedly struck her, at one stage placing both knees on her stomach and pressing down with all his weight.

He also choked her unconscious, then doused her in water to wake her up so he could continue the attack, before sexually assaulting her when she raised fears about bleeding.

Karim left the home a short time later and Ms Chalmers was able to contact her mother and emergency services.

A subsequent ultrasound in hospital revealed the heartbreaking news Ms Chalmers had feared- the foetus was dead.

Karim was arrested the following day and has remained behind bars ever since.

During the original sentencing hearing, Judge Stephen Hanley described Karim’s behaviour as “misogynistic and controlling”.

“He refused to respect the victim’s wishes and desire to have the child,” he told the court.

Karim pleaded guilty to the shocking attack on Ms Chalmers.

But the state’s highest court found his original sentence was “manifestly inadequate” and resentenced him in December.

“From the time he found out the victim was pregnant he embarked on a course to terminate the pregnancy, by any means.”

While the CCA judges accepted Judge Hanley had made “no patent error” in his original judgment, they found the sentence “did not reflect the objective gravity” of the crime and “fell short of recognising the community’s disapprobation of the respondent’s conduct”.

The court heard Karim attempted to blame his behaviour towards Ms Chalmers on the psychological aftermath of watching his close mate Shady Kanj be shot dead in Sydney’s underworld war a month earlier in August 2021.

Judge Hanley rejected the excuse.

The court heard Karim had addictions to gambling and drugs, the latter of which he had developed while dealing drugs on behalf of the Alameddine crime network, as part of the R4W (Ready 4 War) syndicate.

Karim’s overall sentence includes a partly accumulated jail term of three years for a charge of supplying a prohibited drug on an ongoing basis relating to his time in the R4W syndicate.