Overview
- Jurors heard Varley’s initial police statement describing leaving the 13‑month‑old on a bath chair, finding him partly in shallow water, and giving CPR as his partner drove to hospital.
- Clinicians told the court the child was dry with no water in his airways, and blood‑gas results pointed to a longer period without oxygen than the few minutes Varley described.
- Hospital CCTV and police body‑camera footage played in court showed Varley agitated in A&E and later saying “I’m going to hell” in the bereavement room.
- A senior doctor testified she heard Varley say “I f***ing killed him” during resuscitation, and other staff said they saw no signs consistent with drowning.
- A post‑mortem found acute upper airway obstruction and about 40 injuries, both men deny all charges, and Preston had been placed with them in April 2023 before he died at Blackpool Victoria Hospital in July 2023.