Teacher Convicted of Murdering Adopted 13-Month-Old Boy

A teacher has been convicted of murdering a 13-month-old boy he adopted with his male partner just months before the child's death.

Jamie Varley, 37, was found guilty at Preston Crown Court of murdering Preston Davey in July 2023.

His partner, John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, was convicted of sexual assault, child cruelty and allowing the death of a child, BBC reported.

The court heard that Preston was adopted by the couple in April 2023 after spending the first months of his life in foster care.

During the short period he lived with them, he was subjected to repeated abuse, sexual abuse and physical assaults, prosecutors said.

Preston was born in June 2022 and was taken into care by Oldham Council shortly after birth.

He was placed with foster parents when he was five days old and remained with them for the first 10 months of his life before being adopted by Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley.

Jurors heard that in the less than four months Preston lived with the couple in Blackpool, he suffered 40 traumatic injuries.

The court also heard that indecent images and videos of the child were taken.

Varley initially told police that Preston had accidentally drowned in a bath after he left him unattended for a short period.

However, prosecutors said the account was inconsistent with the evidence.

When Preston was rushed to hospital on July 27, 2023, he was unresponsive.

The trial heard that his hair was dry, he was still wearing a nappy and there was no evidence he had swallowed water.

A Home Office post-mortem examination ruled out drowning as the cause of death.

Medical experts concluded that Preston died from acute upper airway obstruction caused by an object or objects being inserted into his mouth.

The trial also heard that Preston had been taken to Blackpool Victoria Hospital three times before his death with suspicious bruising and injuries.

Medical staff raised concerns, but explanations provided by the defendants were accepted at the time.

Several social workers also had contact with the family during that period.

Following an eight-week trial, jurors spent around 14 hours deliberating before returning guilty verdicts on multiple charges.

Varley was convicted of murder, two counts of assault by penetration, five counts of child cruelty, grievous bodily harm, sexual assault of a child, 13 counts of taking indecent photographs or videos of a child, one count of distributing an indecent image of a child and one count of making an indecent image.

McGowan-Fazakerley was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, two counts of child cruelty and one count of sexual assault of a child.

Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fallows described the pair as "pure evil", saying the abuse began almost immediately after Preston was placed in their care.

"For the first nine months of his life Preston was a happy and healthy child but by the end he was a broken shell," Fallows said.