Adoptive father 'sexually abused and smothered baby'

A former high school teacher sexually assaulted and smothered to death a baby boy he adopted months earlier with his partner, a jury has been told.

The court heard Preston Davey, who was pronounced dead at Blackpool Victoria Hospital in July 2023, had suffered 40 traumatic injuries over four months.

Jamie Varley, 37, is accused of killing the 13-month-old, along with 25 other charges relating to his sexual and physical mistreatment.

His partner John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, is accused of causing or allowing the death of the child and four other offences. Both men deny all charges.

• Warning: The following court evidence contains information some readers may find distressing

Preston Crown Court heard that in the final months of his brief life, the child had been routinely ill-treated, sexually abused and physically assaulted.

Peter Wright KC, opening the case for the prosecution, said Preston had been a "perfectly healthy boy" before he was adopted by the defendants in April 2023.

But, he said, the boy was admitted to hospital with injuries three times in the next four months. He died on 27 July.

Wright said: "This is inevitably a highly emotionally charged case.

"It's a terrible case because it involves the death of a very, very young child.

"It is inevitable that it will provoke strong feelings in anyone who hears the details."

Preston was born on 16 June 2022, and at nine months old was placed with the defendants for them to adopt, living at their home on Staining Road, Blackpool, the court heard.

Wright said Preston had been taken by the defendants to the hospital's A&E at about 18:30 BST on 27 July.

He was unconscious and in a state of cardiac arrest and died less than an hour later.

A post-mortem examination found Preston's cause of death was acute upper airways obstruction, as a result of smothering.

Wright said the boy's tragic death was "not the result of some dreadful yet unforeseen accident or natural phenomenon".

"The evidence gathered during the investigation into his untimely death revealed a much more sinister pathology," he said.

"We say the evidence demonstrates that he was murdered by one of the people entrusted with his wellbeing; one of his proposed adoptive parents.

"We say the person responsible for killing Preston Davey was the defendant, Jamie Varley."

Wright said the post-mortem had also shown the child had suffered about 40 injuries over four months, including external and internal bruising, and a fractured arm.

The prosecution said that Varley was mostly responsible, but evidence recovered by detectives implicated both men in sexual assault – and McGowan-Fazakerley had failed to protect the baby.

Wright told the jury, that on the day Preston died Varley had sexually assaulted Preston, causing internal injuries, while home alone with the child and McGowan-Fazakerley had been at work.