Preston murder trial: co-accused says trust in partner was 'misplaced'
John McGowan-Fazakerley told jurors his faith in partner Jamie Varley was misplaced as the trial over adopted baby Preston Davey's death continues at Preston Crown Court.
Co-accused says trust in murder suspect Varley was 'misplaced', Preston baby trial hears
John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, has told a jury at Preston Crown Court that his trust in his partner Jamie Varley was "misplaced", as reported by bbc.co.uk covering the ongoing murder trial over the death of 13-month-old Preston Davey.
McGowan-Fazakerley faces charges of causing or allowing the death of Preston, along with child cruelty and sexual assault. Varley, 37, a high school teacher, is accused of Preston's murder and multiple counts of cruelty and child sexual abuse. Both men deny a sexual interest in the baby and have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Warning: This article contains references to distressing court evidence.
Preston was adopted by the couple in April 2023 and described in court as a "sweet and bubbly" baby. During the four months he lived at the pair's Blackpool home, prosecutors allege he was routinely ill-treated, subjected to physical assault, sexual abuse, and that indecent images and videos were taken of him. He was rushed to hospital on 27 July 2023 and died shortly after.
McGowan-Fazakerley's account
McGowan-Fazakerley, a sales manager, told jurors he had no reason to believe Varley had harmed Preston. He said Varley told him en route to hospital that he had left Preston alone in a bath, and that at the time he believed the death was accidental. The pair continued to live together after Preston's death until they were re-arrested in 2025 and subsequently charged.
While on remand, McGowan-Fazakerley said he began trying to "put the puzzle together" as he became aware of the prosecution's case.
His barrister, Anne Whyte KC, asked whether he had come to understand what happened to Preston on the day of his death. "No, no. I don't think I fully understood why he is not here," McGowan-Fazakerley replied.
When Whyte asked whether his trust in Varley had proved to be misplaced, McGowan-Fazakerley said: "Yes I do feel like my trust in Jamie has been misplaced."
He also confirmed that when he was still depending on Varley's account of events during the remand period, he had not yet seen a video recording Varley had taken of Preston on the afternoon of 27 July — the day the baby was taken to hospital. McGowan-Fazakerley was at work when the footage was recorded. He said he first became aware of it during a police interview.
"I feel like he has hidden that from me. I don't understand why," McGowan-Fazakerley told the court. "I can recall every aspect of that day from the moment I opened my eyes until I went to sleep. The days, weeks and months afterwards, all I have done is replay that day over and over and over again."
He confirmed that Varley is now his ex-partner.
Drowning claim ruled out
Varley has denied fabricating the "bath incident". However, a post-mortem examination ruled out drowning as the cause of Preston's death and found that the baby had sustained 40 traumatic injuries.
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 count of distributing an indecent photo of a child, and one count of making an indecent photo.
McGowan-Fazakerley denies allowing the death of a child, three counts of child cruelty, and one count of sexual assault of a child.
The trial continues at Preston Crown Court.
Source: Google News UK — Crime (en)