To the police she was a missing person. Erika knew her ‘perfect friend’ was dead

Shereen Kumar’s closest person remembers her arsenic a down-to-earth mother-of-two and “stunning creature” with the champion laughter successful the world.

“She would propulsion her caput back, and it would conscionable autumn retired of her,” Erika Wadlow-Smith said.

“She was the cleanable friend.”

Erika Wadlow-Smith and her person Shereen Kumar, who was murdered successful July 2022.

When Kumar, 43, started dating Vincent Carlino, Wadlow-Smith was near stumped.

“I could not spot what this glorious goddess could perchance beryllium funny successful him,” she said.

The on-and-off narration lasted for 17 months, ending successful July 2022 erstwhile Carlino murdered Kumar wrong their Dural home, successful Sydney’s north-west, earlier dumping her assemblage successful bushland and pretending she was missing.

Shereen Kumar (left) is remembered by Erika Wadlow-Smith (right) arsenic the cleanable friend.

The mates had each owned dog-walking franchises and sometimes lived together, sometimes apart.

Speaking to the Herald aft Carlino pleaded blameworthy to murder, Wadlow-Smith said she was near confused arsenic to however idiosyncratic similar their person “could beryllium manipulated by idiosyncratic similar that man”.

“But it’s due to the fact that Shereen was truthful afloat of love, had specified a benignant heart, truthful afloat of forgiveness,” she said. “I deliberation radical similar him look for radical similar her.”

Wadlow-Smith recalled archetypal gathering Carlino erstwhile Kumar, a businesswoman and part-time model, brought him to a party. She felt helium looked suspicious and mean, and noticed her person was sitting distant from the “girl gang”.

‘I deliberation radical similar [killer Vincent Carlino] look for radical similar her.’

“He conscionable was not worthy,” she said. “I retrieve conscionable thinking, ‘Something’s not right.’”

Asked whether Kumar was forthcoming astir troubles successful her relationship, Wadlow-Smith said it “took a agelong time”.

Vincent Carlino reported his spouse Shereen Kumar missing, but had murdered her.Credit: Facebook

“I deliberation she was trying to marque it dependable a spot amended than it was,” she said.

“She would ever beryllium precise antiaircraft astir him. There was thing we didn’t speech about, but abruptly that changed, it was similar everything was guarded. We lone got small bits retired of her.”

According to the agreed facts tendered successful Carlino’s case, the narration was “tumultuous with predominant hostility and arguing”.

Kumar had been a precise spiritual person, and Carlino “hooked into that” with his abuse, Wadlow-Smith said.

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“I retrieve asking her if she loved him due to the fact that I couldn’t recognize however anyone could emotion idiosyncratic who was doing specified things. She ne'er answered, she conscionable kept saying, ‘Oh, but we’re meant to beryllium together.’ ”

Wadlow-Smith said she would support her telephone connected astatine nighttime and had told Kumar she had a country made up that she could enactment successful to beryllium harmless from Carlino’s abuse.

But she ne'er came.

Wadlow-Smith said Carlino played “mind games” and brainwashed her friend, who connected 1 juncture “retaliated against him”.

“He held that implicit her, said she was going to beryllium the 1 successful occupation with the law,” she said.

She said Kumar “didn’t privation to bash thing that would hazard her seeing the kids”, whom she co-parented arsenic they lived with their father.

‘The 1 happening I truly privation radical to cognize is, don’t deliberation home unit lone happens to anemic oregon easy led, susceptible women’

In the weeks earlier she died, Kumar told her person that she had interaction with Carlino, but said it was for concern purposes.

Wadlow-Smith said she came retired of an assignment 1 time and her telephone lit up with messages asking, “Erika, where’s Shereen?”

Erika Wadlow-Smith and Shereen Kumar enjoyed play trips away.

She said radical were referencing the missing persons study connected Kumar which mentioned a partner.

“I was like, but she doesn’t person one? Then I deliberation it dawned connected me,” Wadlow-Smith said.

“I looked into it and recovered that she’d moved successful with him [Carlino] and not told me. It was similar knowing idiosyncratic truthful good and abruptly not knowing them astatine all.

“I was questioning everything, adjacent the friendship. How could we beryllium truthful close, and yet she wouldn’t archer maine astir thing arsenic large arsenic this? That’s what home unit does; it’s the shame of it.”

Among his galore lies to police, Carlino claimed Kumar had near their Dural location for a locomotion connected the nighttime of July 20, 2022, to get immoderate “fresh air”, wearing her pyjamas and a dressing gown, and that helium had gone looking for her aft she did not instrumentality home.

Wadlow-Smith said she rang constabulary due to the fact that that mentation was “bullshit”.

“When I heard Shereen was missing, I knew she was dead,” she said.

“I felt precise isolated from the process due to the fact that each they [police] would accidental is, ‘Did you spot her past night?’ Well, no. They’d say, ‘Oh well, we don’t request to talk to you then.’

“I deliberation astatine that constituent I knew it was going to beryllium a execution case. Shereen was specified a strong, decisive, intelligent woman. If she was successful danger, and she could get away, she’s not conscionable going to rotation off, she would find her mode to information and hopefully me.”

Wadlow-Smith gathered friends to hunt the area, but constabulary recovered Kumar’s assemblage minutes from home.

“I conscionable howled,” she said. “I hardly recognised the sound I was making … I was truthful profoundly wounded.”

At the petition of Kumar’s grieving mother, she cleaned up her friend’s belongings wrong the Dural code and her location astatine The Ponds, bagging apparel and jewellery and uncovering her diaries which she said constabulary person ne'er looked over.

“The 1 happening I truly privation radical to cognize is, don’t deliberation home unit lone happens to anemic oregon easy led, susceptible women,” Wadlow-Smith said.

“Because Shereen Kumar was astute and intelligent. She was nobody’s fool.”

Wadlow-Smith said her friend’s communicative was 1 of many, with dozens of cases this twelvemonth of women allegedly killed by a spouse oregon erstwhile partner.

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“They are conscionable a small extremity of the iceberg,” she said. “Below the waterline, not seen, you’ve got the pushing, the shoving, the controlling, the panic … those women are successful their thousands.”

Wadlow-Smith, a caregiver by trade, said politicians person to marque immoderate pugnacious decisions, and the absorption should beryllium connected combating power and coercion alternatively than a “top-down” attack successful effect to deaths.

“If we tin get to grips with that, wherever women close astatine the commencement person got idiosyncratic to speech to, past we halt the deaths,” she said. “We’ve got to bash thing to radiance a airy down close astatine the bottom.”

Her comments mirrored those of anti-domestic unit campaigner Rosie Batty, whose 11-year-old lad Luke was murdered by his begetter successful 2014. Last week, Batty said: “We truly request to look astatine prevention and superior prevention … truthful that we’re stopping those falling disconnected the borderline of the cliff.”

Wadlow-Smith said Kumar’s friends and household were inactive grieving for her and stay “so angry”.

“She truly was 1 of the best.”

Carlino volition look a condemnation proceeding successful December.

If you oregon anyone you cognize needs help, telephone Lifeline connected 13 11 14 (and spot lifeline.org.au), 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732), the National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service connected 1800 211 028 oregon Kids Helpline connected 1800 551 800.

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