The moment a screaming mother was arrested on suspicion of murdering her 10-month-old son has been revealed alongside the chilling 999 call made by his killer stepfather.
Jacob Crouch was found dead in his cot at his Derbyshire home on the morning of 30 December, 2020 and was later discovered to have 39 rib fractures, 19 visible bruises and several internal injuries following a “vicious” assault.
A jury at Derby Crown Court on Wednesday found his stepfather Craig Crouch, 39, guilty of murder and three counts of child cruelty.
The boy’s mother Gemma Barton, 33, was cleared of murder, an alternative charge of manslaughter, and two counts of child cruelty, but was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child and a third count of child cruelty.
Police bodycam footage showing the moment the pair were arrested has now been released. Barton can be heard shrieking repeatedly: “I didn’t do anything.” Meanwhile, Crouch is silent apart from when he tells the officer they will not need handcuffs and says: “I’ll come with you.”
Jacob died from peritonitis – an infection of the lining of the abdominal organs – caused by traumatic bowel perforation— (PA Media)
A chilling audio recording of a 999 call Crouch made to report the death of Jacob was also released by Derbyshire Police. In response to the call handler asking if the patient is breathing, Crouch can be heard saying: “No, he’s passed away.”
In a measured tone, Crouch proceeds to tell the call handler his cover story for what happened to Jacob the night he died, claiming the baby was “fine” just two hours before he was pronounced dead by paramedics.
After four days of deliberation by a jury following a seven-week trial at Derby Crown Court, Craig Crouch, 39, was convicted of murder and three counts of child cruelty— (Derbyshire Police)
Crouch said: “We’ve got a 10-month-old baby. He was struggling to eat last night. He brought up his dinner. We put him to bed and checked on him throughout the night. My partner checked on him at 5am - she told me that he was okay, that everything was fine. I’ve just gone in to check on him, and he’s stone cold, he’s gone.”
Jacob died from peritonitis – an infection of the lining of the abdominal organs – caused by traumatic bowel perforation.
Prosecutor Mary Prior KC said that the baby died at his home in Foxley Chase, Linton, near Swadlincote, following a “vicious assault”, which saw him “kicked or stamped on with such severe force that it fractured a rib and caused a tear in his stomach and bowel”.
It was the culmination of regular abuse within a “culture of cruelty”, which included making the 10-month-old eat his own vomit, she said.
Jacob’s mother Gemma Barton, 33, was cleared of murder, an alternative charge of manslaughter, and two counts of child cruelty, but was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child and a third count of child cruelty— (Derbyshire Police)
Opening the case in June, Mrs Prior said: “Neither sought medical help for Jacob at any stage for the pain and suffering caused when his bones were broken or in the few days that followed.”
Dr Sarah Dixon, a consultant paediatrician, told the court Jacob suffered “repeated physical abuse” in the weeks, days and hours prior to his death and that it was “not remotely” possible that the injuries could have been self-inflicted.
They included a traumatic bowel perforation which led to a fatal infection, which forensic pathologist Dr Michael Biggs said could only have been sustained through blunt force trauma such as a punch, kick or stamp.
Jacob Crouch was found dead in his cot at his Derbyshire home on the morning of 30 December, 2020 and was later discovered to have 39 rib fractures, 19 visible bruises and several internal injuries— (Derbyshire Police/PA Wire)
He also said that he would expect to see such injuries in car crash victims or those who had suffered a multi-storey fall.
Giving evidence, Crouch, a forklift driver at JCB, had said that Jacob’s injuries had “nothing to do with me”, stating that he “didn’t see anything” and “didn’t see anyone do anything to hurt” his stepson. He claimed he “loves children” and that he had supported Jacob “from the start”.
Barton, 33, also denied ever harming her son, and when asked who could have inflicted the injuries said: “It was not me so that leaves Craig.”
She claimed her son was her “bundle of joy” and said it felt like her “whole world had just ended” when she was awoken by Crouch screaming that Jacob was dead.
Barton, of Ray Street, Heanor, Derbyshire, and Crouch, of Donisthorpe Lane, Moira, Swadlincote, will be sentenced at the same court on Friday
