Foster mum had 'gut feeling' about teacher accused of murdering and sexually abusing adopted baby boy
Jamie Varley and John McGowan-Fazackerley deny several charges following the death of 13-month old Preston Davey
The foster mother of a adopted baby boy said she had a "gut feeling something was wrong" after handing the youngster over to a former teacher and his boyfriend.
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Thirteen-month old Preston Davey died in hospital on July 2023 after an alleged sexual assault by high-school teacher Jamie Varley.
Varley is accused of murder, alongside 25 other charges relating to the child's sexual and physical mistreatment.
His partner, John McGowan-Fazackerley, 32, is accused of allowing the little boy’s death and other charges relating to abuse and mistreatment.
Both men deny the charges against them.
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Sandra Cooper looked after Preston Davey after his birth in June 2022 when he was taken into care by Oldham Council aged just five days old, a jury at Preston Crown Court heard on Wednesday.
Mrs Cooper and husband Paul fostered Preston until he was 10 months old, until April 2023 when he was given up for adoption to high school teacher Jamie Varley, 37, and his partner John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32.
Describing Preston, she said: "He was beautiful, he was happy, he laughed, he smiled really early. Just a really lovable baby. He loved cuddles. He was just having a really nice life."
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In just under the next four months after his adoption, Preston was allegedly routinely ill-treated, had indecent images and videos taken of him, sexually abused and physically assaulted, suffering 40 traumatic injuries.
Mrs Cooper, who had fostered 43 children over 27 years, said there was a gradual familiarisation with the adoptive parents before finally giving Preston up for adoption and the child moving into the defendants’ home on April 3, 2023.
But, afterwards, planned visits by her to see the child had been made difficult by the defendants, she claimed, leading her to make a complaint to a social worker.
She told the jury: “I was worried. I felt like something is wrong. I felt like they were hiding him from me.
“It’s just my, call it gut feeling. I felt like something was wrong.”
Eventually a date was made and she got to see Preston for the last time.
“It was made difficult for us but I would’ve walked to the ends of the earth for that visit,” Mrs Cooper said.
“He just looked a bit stiff, a bit blank, but we had not seen him for a while. I was just really glad to see him.”
Amy Shepherdson, Preston’s social worker with Oldham Borough Council, was part of a team to find prospective adoptive parents and made home visits after the adoption.
The social worker was asked about the three times Preston was taken to hospital in the just under four months he was with the defendants before his death.
Ms Shepherdson said on May 25, 2023, she was sent a Whatsapp message from Varley to say Preston was in hospital, diagnosed with a chest infection and was undergoing scans.
She said the hospital admission of a “looked after” child had raised a safeguarding issue and police officers visited the ward, but a medical explanation had been provided for the baby’s visit and this assuaged any concerns.
On June 30, Preston was taken to hospital again with a “fever” and the social worker conducted a home visit on July 4, where Ms Shepherdson noted the child was “pale and did not seem himself. Very little energy”, adding he was a little boy “that had been poorly”.
On July 10, Preston was again in hospital after a fracture to his left elbow.
Varley had made a video call to the social worker, explaining what happened, she said.
Ms Shepherdson said: “Jamie looked grey, he was beside himself, he was teary. He said Preston looked in pain. He had unintentionally hurt Preston.”
She said Varley told her the child had woken in the night, he had gone to settle the baby and when putting him back down in his cot, Preston had twisted and “he heard a sound like a knee clicking”.
Ms Shepherdson said after contacting the hospital and speaking to the ward sister, she was told there were no safeguarding worries and she visited Preston’s home that day.
Preston appeared his usual, playful self, Ms Shepherdson said, adding: “I did not have any concerns.”
Ms Shepherdson told the court her next involvement was on July 27, 2023.
“I got a phone call from John to advise that Preston had died,” she said.
Preston had been rushed into hospital unconscious and in a state of cardiac arrest, and medics could not revive him.
Varley told police the child had drowned while left in the bath.
A Home Office post-mortem examination found multiple non-accidental, internal and external injuries, and a cause of death to be acute upper airways obstruction by either smothering or an object or objects inserted into his mouth.
Varley denies murder, manslaughter, two counts of assault by penetration, five counts of cruelty to a child, grievous bodily harm, sexual assault of a child, 13 counts of taking indecent photos or videos of a child, one of distributing an indecent photo of a child, to his co-accused, and one of making an indecent photo.
McGowan-Fazakerley denies allowing the death of a child, three counts of child cruelty and one count of the sexual assault of a child.
The trial continues.