Teacher ‘who abused and murdered child he was adopting’ instructed police of ‘panicked’ battle to revive him ‘after youngster by accident fell off chair into tub’, courtroom hears

A teacher accused of murdering and sexually abusing a baby told police of his ‘panicked’ struggle to revive the infant after he accidentally fell into the bath, a court heard today.

He later declared: ‘I’m so sorry, it shouldn’t have happened.’ 

The court heard Varley maintained his explanation even months later, when presented with evidence of 47 injuries to Preston’s body. 

In his initial statement to police prior to his arrest, Jamie Varley, 37, said he had put Preston Davey in the bath after he was sick on a visit to Varley’s mother’s house earlier the same day.

Varley said that on returning home, he had a ‘two to three minute’ shower while Preston was in the adjacent bath ‘banging’ a toy drum. He left the room to dry himself and put on his clothes.

He returned to find the baby on his side, ‘half in, half out of the water’, having fallen off his bath chair into ‘two inches’ of bathwater, jurors were told.

Varley said he ‘panicked’ on finding that Preston – who he and co-accused John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, had renamed ‘Elijah’ – was ‘still breathing but looked like he was struggling and groggy’.

The secondary school head of year said he ‘threw’ the chair into the sink and pulled Preston out of the water. He then rubbed Preston’s face and back ‘to see if he had any sick or water in his throat’.

Varley claimed he put Preston into a babygrow outfit and laid him on a changing mat – but he was sick, producing vomit ‘like clumpy milk’.

He fetched another babygrow and changed Preston, who had become ‘weak and floppy’, the court heard.

Varley recalled: ‘I have sat him up and patted his back to get the water out. His belly was bloated and I tried rubbing it to get it (the water) out’.

Varley, who said he put Preston in the bath at 5.30pm, claimed that when his partner McGowan-Fazakerley arrived back at their home in Blackpool, he recalled ‘shouting’ at him, and McGowan-Fazakerley joined in efforts to help Preston, the court heard.

Varley said: ‘I didn’t want him to choke. We then got into the car and drove to the hospital. John was driving and I was in the front giving Elijah CPR as he had stopped breathing.’

Varley’s statement was given to Detective Constable Sheralee Birtwistle, who had interviewed him separately from McGowan-Fazakerley at Blackpool Victoria Hospital after Preston’s death on the evening of July 27, 2023.

Describing Varley’s demeanour, DC Birtwistle said: ‘He was pacing around, he was quite distraught. At one point, he sat on the floor.’

Shortly before the interview, the officer said she first encountered Varley when she went into the hospital relatives’ room, initially meeting Ms Graham and McGowan-Fazakerley before Varley came in.

Both men had introduced themselves as ‘dad’ and the family were cradling Preston.

DC Birtwistle said: ‘I introduced myself and explained the reason I was there was because Elijah had passed away.

‘As soon as I said the words, ‘passed away’, I had the reaction (from Varley), who said ‘passed away, he’s not passed away. I don’t know why everyone keeps saying that’. He was very distraught, upset’.

McGowan-Fazakerley, interviewed in a separate room, said that when he arrived home he was ‘unsure whether Preston was breathing or not’ but that he ‘did see him be sick’.

The officer who interviewed McGowan-Fazakerley, DC Byrony Culshaw, said he also saw Varley question the appearance of Preston, including attempting to lift his lip and saying ‘what is that?’.

DC Culshaw said: ‘I explained to Jamie and John that Preston may have had medical interventions’.

He added that when McGowan-Fazakerley asked for Varley to hold Preston so he could go to the toilet, Varley ‘was crying’.

He said: ‘I’m so sorry, it shouldn’t have happened. He’s cold, he feels cold’.

Varley was initially arrested on suspicion of child neglect.

Jurors were played video footage of a later interview in September 2023, after Varley was re-arrested on suspicion of murder – where he maintained Preston drowned in the bath.

An unnamed officer showed Varley how Preston had 45 external bruises: four to his arms, nine on his legs, eight to his back and 24 around his head including behind the ears.

The officer said: ‘We aren’t satisfied that all of them are accidental. Is that the case?’

Varley replied: ‘I don’t believe he had that many bruises.’

Quizzed on five ‘layer’ bruises to his legs which the officer suggested may have been a ‘hand mark or slap’, Varley said: ‘That’s a load of rubbish’, adding: ‘You can say frustration, stress, whatever you want. He’s not been abused.’

The teacher was asked about further bruising in Preston’s throat ‘which we know hasn’t been caused by medical intervention’ – and an injury to the baby’s bottom.

Varley maintained the throat injury had been caused by ‘medical tubes’, while he said the infant’s bottom ‘had been fine’. ‘I didn’t notice anything at nappy change,’ he said.

When told the ‘initial post mortem examination indicates ‘Elijah’ did not drown’, Varley replied ‘I believe it (his death) was caused by water 100 per cent’.

The officer told Varley he and McGowan-Fazakerley had been given a ‘healthy little boy’ but Varley replied: ‘The foster carers may have missed a lot’.

Varley was also asked why he made a video showing Preston struggling to breathe at 4.45pm on July 27, just 1hr 45 minutes before he was taken to hospital and died.

The officer said: ‘Had he gone to hospital at the time of that video, he would be with us today.’

Varley explained alleged indecent videos focusing on the baby’s anatomy were ‘innocent fun’ to ‘show him when he was 18’ – while videos showing Preston struggling to breathe were to show hospital staff in case he was readmitted for seizures.

Varley denies murder, manslaughter, sexual assault, GBH and cruelty, as well as indecent images charges.

McGowan-Fazakerley denies causing or allowing the death of a child, sexual assault and cruelty,

The trial continues.