The identity of a teenager who played a part in the death of a five-year-old boy has been revealed. An anonymity order from the case of Logan Mwangi's murder was lifted at Cardiff Crown Court, confirming 14-year-old Craig Mulligan's name.
It is the first time Mulligan's name has been able to be reported following Logan's death in July 2021. The teen has been sentenced to a minimum of 15 years behind bars after being found guilty of murder.
Alongside Mulligan, Logan's mum and stepdad - Angharad Williamson, 31, and John Cole, 40 - were also convicted of the five-year-old's murder. They have been sentenced to at least 28 and 29 years in jail respectively.
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Logan's body was discovered in the River Ogmore in Pandy Park, in Sarn near Bridgend, on July 31 last year. Police officers found Logan partially submerged, wearing dinosaur pyjamas and a Spider-Man top 250 metres away from his home.
Logan had suffered 56 externals cuts and bruises along with what were described as “catastrophic” internal injuries likened to a high-speed road crash. Experts believe the injuries could have been caused by “brutal and sustained assault” in the hours or days leading up to Logan's death.
Prosecutors in the case told the court that in the months and weeks building up to Logan's murder, the child had been “dehumanised” by his family. Logan's stammer had also reportedly worsened, particularly around Cole, and he also frequently wet himself and self-harmed.
During sentencing today (June 30), Mrs Justice Jefford said: “You are responsible for Logan’s death and all the anguish that has followed from it. Because he was killed in his own home, it is not possible to be sure what has happened to him.
“Shortly before his death, at which time he was three feet five inches and weighed only three stone one pound, he was subjected to a brutal attack.”
Mrs Justice Jefford also lifted the Section 45 order under the Youth Justice Criminal Evidence Act to name Mulligan. “I have come to the conclusion, having considered the submissions this morning, that I should lift the reporting restriction in this matter,” she said.
Friends of Williamson and Cole said the latter did not like Logan and his attitude changed after becoming obsessed with the idea his partner had cheated on him with Logan's dad Ben. Cole was also reluctant to let Logan see the baby the 40-year-old had with Williamson.
A safeguarding referral for Logan was made to police by medics in August 2020 after he suffered a broken arm and by March, concerns around Cole's behaviour led to Logan and his younger sibling to be assigned their own social worker. A few months later in June - a month before Logan's death - the family were removed from a child protection register, meaning it was believed they were no longer at risk of significant harm.
After Logan's death, a foster family who Mulligan stayed with claimed that had they had heard the teen singing: “I love kids, I f****** love kids, I love to punch kids in the head, it’s orgasmic.”
Weeks before his death, Logan suffered a broken collarbone and never got medical treatment. On July 20, he tested positive for Covid and was shut in his room with a baby gate stopping him from leaving.
Caroline Rees QC, prosecuting, said: “He had been kept like a prisoner in his small bedroom in the flat you saw, a room likened by Williamson as a dungeon.”
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