A UK educator, embroiled in a chilling sequence of events, has been convicted of the sexual assault and murder of a 13-month-old child he was in the process of adopting. Officials described this four-month ordeal as “pure evil.”
Jamie Varley faced a slew of charges including murder, sexual assault against a minor, grievous bodily harm, child cruelty, and offenses related to indecent images, as per a June 15 statement from the Lancashire Constabulary.
His partner, John McGowan-Fazakerley, was also held accountable, found guilty of allowing the death of a child, various cruelty offenses, and sexual assault.
Despite their denials, as reported by the BBC, both men were convicted following a harrowing seven-week trial. This trial laid bare the severe abuse suffered by young Preston Elijah Davey while under their care.
The convictions followed a seven-week trial that detailed the horrific abuse that Preston Elijah Davey experienced while in the couple’s care.
Preston, who was previously described as happy and healthy, was placed with the couple in March 2023. However, police said within weeks, Varley messaged a friend that he found the toddler “annoying” and that he was struggling with childcare.
Soon after, Varley started recording indecent images and videos of Preston, sharing it with McGowan-Fazakerley through Snapchat, according to police. Some of the footage, police noted, showed injuries on the toddler that were consistent with physical abuse.
That digital evidence captured only part of what was happening behind closed doors.
According to police, in May 2023, McGowan-Fazakerley made a call to emergency services, but quickly hung up after a male voice in the background allegedly said, “put it down.” When dispatch called back, a man who answered said he had called by accident.
Then, about 30 minutes later, McGowan-Fazakerley called the non-emergency line to report that Preston was having trouble breathing and struggling to hold his head up, according to the press release. When a medical professional called back, no one answered.
At that time, the couple did not seek further medical attention, said police.
Later that month, however, they took Preston to Blackpool Victoria Hospital for his breathing difficulties and a seizure. Though hospital staff contacted police, prompting detectives to attend the visit, there were no concerns about potential abuse, according to investigators.
Then, in June, Varley messaged McGowan-Fazakerley, asking him to come home because Preston was experiencing a “potential medical episode,” police noted. However, Varley never pursued medical treatment.
Investigators later recovered evidence from Varley’s phone they said showed him intentionally keeping Preston awake in conduct they called “psychological cruelty.”
Two weeks later, the couple brought Preston back to the hospital for a rash. When staff noted bruising on the boy’s head, Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley showed a video of a toy box falling on Preston. However, authorities later determined the footage had been recorded 12 days prior and did not contribute to the bruising.
The abuse escalated during the final months of Preston’s life.
On July 6, Preston was brought to the hospital for a fractured arm, an injury that Varley could not clearly articulate to doctors, according to police.
Varley first explained there was an incident in Preston’s cot, then said the injury occurred while putting the boy in his car seat. Varley then messaged a friend claiming he had caught Preston falling, according to police.
Later, Varley recorded himself spinning Preston on a playground ride at an “excess speed,” police said. In the videos, authorities described Preston as appearing visibly distressed, with his eyes struggling to focus.
Varley then set two of these videos to music, and shared the footage with others, including McGowan-Fazakerley.
A video recovered from Varley’s phone also showed that Preston had once been left alone in the bathtub for more than 14 minutes. The toddler was in “significant distress,” said police, whimpering as he attempted to exit the tub.
On July 27, Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley brought Preston to the hospital, unconscious and in cardiac arrest, said police.
Varley told hospital staff he left Preston in the tub for a few minutes and when he returned, the boy was submerged in water, according to police. However, Preston was completely dry. At just 13 months, he did not survive.
That same day, Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley were arrested on suspicion of child neglect. Later, an autopsy showed that Preston suffered 40 traumatic injuries including to head, extremities and anus, bowel, and bladder. His cause of death was acute upper airways obstruction.
In August 2023, Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley were re-arrested and found guilty on June 15, 2026. They are scheduled to be sentenced on June 18.
“It is not often in this job that you encounter pure evil,” police spokesperson Andy Fallows said in the press release, adding that the couple, “set about abusing Preston and making his short life a harrowing tale of misery and pain.”
Attorneys for Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Oxygen.
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