11 hours ago
Former teacher accused of sexually assaulting and murdering the baby he was trying to adopt appears in court
A former teacher accused of sexually assaulting and murdering the baby he was trying to adopt has appeared in court.
Jamie Varley, 36, was in the process of adopting 13-month-old Preston Davey in 2023 along with co-accused John McGowan-Fazakerley, 31, who also appeared in the dock at Preston Crown Court on Monday.
Members of the child's family sat yards away in the public gallery alongside police officers, one woman in tears as she looked over at the defendants.
Varley is accused of murder, manslaughter, two counts of assault by penetration of a child, five counts of child cruelty, one count of inflicting grievous bodily harm, and one count of sexual assault of a child.
He is further accused of 10 counts of taking indecent photographs of a child, one count of distributing indecent photographs of a child, two counts of possessing indecent pseudo images of a child, and one count of possession of an extreme pornographic image.
McGowan-Fazakerley is charged with allowing the death of a child, as well as two counts of child cruelty and one count of sexual assault of a child.
All the charges against both men, who lived in Grimsargh, near Preston, span between March and July of 2023, and relate to Preston Davey.
Judge Robert Altham set the date for the trial of both men as April 14, 2026. It is estimated to last up to eight weeks.
He remanded both defendants, who spoke only to confirm their names, in custody to next appear for a plea hearing on October 13.
Judge Robert Altham, at the beginning of a 30-minute hearing dealing with administrative matters, said: 'I gather there are members of Preston's family here. They are most welcome.'
A police investigation first began after officers were called to Blackpool Victoria Hospital at 7.15pm on July 27, 2023 after the baby was brought in unresponsive. Preston was pronounced dead a short time later.
Varley was suspended as teacher at South Shore Academy, Blackpool, when he was arrested in 2023, the Cidari Multi Academy Trust, which now runs the school, said.
