UK court finds man guilty of sexual abuse and murder of adopted baby
Schoolteacher Jamie Varley described as ‘serial manipulator and a serial liar’ in Lancashire court
A schoolteacher described as a “serial manipulator and a serial liar” has been found guilty of sexually abusing and murdering a baby he and his partner had adopted.
Jamie Varley, 37, of Staining, Lancashire, had denied being responsible for the death of 13-month-old Preston Davey but after an eight-week trial was found guilty of the baby’s murder, as well as two counts of assault by penetration, five counts of cruelty to a child, grievous bodily harm and sexual assault of a child.
Varley was also found guilty of 13 counts of taking indecent photos or videos of a child, one count of distributing an indecent photo of a child and one count of making an indecent photo.
Varley, a head of year at a secondary school, had adopted Preston with his partner, John McGowan-Fazakerley, a financial sales manager, who was found guilty of allowing the death of a child, child cruelty and sexual assault. The baby, whose birth name was Elijah, died as a result of acute upper airways obstruction, caused by either smothering or an object or objects being inserted into his mouth.
Gosh, I wonder what that might have been?
His death came at the end of four months during which he was “routinely ill-treated, sexually abused and physically assaulted”, the prosecutor Peter Wright KC had told a trial at Preston crown court. The trial heard that Preston’s body had shown evidence of more than 40 separate injuries, which the pair had claimed he sustained from falling over and dropping toys on to his head.
Wright insisted during the trial that Preston had died while being assaulted by the men, who had begun the process to formerly adopt him four months prior, and that the story told by Varley to police that he had died due to drowning in the bath was merely a cover story created by the pair after Preston died in hospital.
The jury were shown images of the 13-month-old that the prosecution claimed were evidence that he had been sexually and physically abused, including a series of photos of the infant draped over the side of his cot.
Karen Tonge, of the Crown Prosecution Service, described the case as “one of the most shocking and horrific cases I have dealt with in my career” and said that Preston had been “abused with sickening ease” by both men.
“It is difficult to comprehend how the very people who should have loved him could inflict such sickening physical and sexual harm on an innocent child,” said Tonge. “No child should have to go through what Preston went through in the last four months of his short life and I cannot begin to imagine the toll this has taken on those that loved Preston. My thoughts remain with them all.”
DCI Andy Fellows of Lancashire police, the senior investigating officer, said Varley had shown himself to be a “serial manipulator and a serial liar” who had made Preston’s short life a “harrowing tale of misery and pain”.
Fallows said: “It is not often in this job that you encounter pure evil. Anybody who has followed this trial will no doubt understand why I place Jamie Varley and John McGowan-Fazakerley in that category.
“Almost from day one, they set about abusing Preston and making his short life a harrowing tale of misery and pain. It was this abuse that ultimately led to Preston’s death.
“For the first nine months of his life Preston was a happy and healthy child but by the end he was a broken shell. This was due to the sordid and wicked acts of Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley.
“Throughout this trial we have tried to ensure the focus remained on baby Preston Davey, a little boy who was physically, sexually and psychologically abused by two individuals who were supposed to love and care for him. While I understand the focus in the media will go elsewhere, I would ask that Preston is not forgotten in your coverage.”
Both defendants will be sentenced on Thursday.
Of course, the focus will go elsewhere if only because the perverts were a gay couple and mainstream media is very protective of LGBTQs.
Previous story on this case can be found here
Kidderminster man charged with child sex offence
A man from Kidderminster has been charged with a child sex offence after a report was made to West Mercia Police by an online group.
Peter Mills, 67, of Blakebrook in Kidderminster, has been charged with one count of attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.
According to West Mercia Police, the charge follows a report made by an online child sexual abuse activist group on Friday, June 12.
Mills is due to appear at Kidderminster Magistrates Court today (Monday, June 15).
Guisborough man jailed for sexually abusing young child
A court heard Christopher Burns' victim was 9 at the time of the abuse
A man from Guisborough has been jailed for sexually abusing a young girl when she was just nine years old.
Cleveland Police say Christopher Burns, now 72, was in his mid to late 40s when he targeted the child. In 2021, the victim felt she was ready to disclose what that had happened to her as a child and a police investigation was launched.
Burns denied his crimes putting the victim through the trauma of a trial. On 26th March 2026, he was found guilty of two counts of indecent assault of a girl under the age of 14 offences at Teesside Crown Court.
He was immediately remanded into custody and appeared at the same court on Monday 15th June where he was sentenced to seven years in prison with one year on extended licence.
Burns is now on the Sex Offender’s Register for life and has been made subject to an indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and a restraining order to protect other vulnerable children and the victim.
Speaking after sentencing, officer in the case Detective Constable Wini Hind said: “Burns was a respected member of the community who took advantage of a vulnerable child for his own deprived sexual gratification.
“I am pleased with the sentence given to Burns today. This, along with being placed on the Sex Offender’s Register and being made subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), will protect his victim and the most vulnerable members of our society from his predatory behaviour.
“My thoughts remain with the victim and her family as they continue to rebuild their lives, and I hope they will find solace in this sentence. They have shown incredible courage and strength to report these crimes. This sentence reassures them they were believed, their voice has been heard, and justice has now been served.
“It’s never too late to report an incident to police; we have specially trained officers who will support you throughout. You can report at any time of day or night online via the Cleveland Police website or by phoning 101.”
No comments:
Post a Comment