A 14-year-old sentenced to life in prison for murdering Logan Mwangi can now be named as his stepbrother Craig Mulligan. The teenager was convicted of the five-year-old’s murder alongside his stepfather John Cole and stepmother Angharad Williamson.
Mulligan was just 13 when he played his part in Logan’s death and the cover-up which saw the young boy’s body dumped in the River Ogmore in Bridgend, South Wales. The youth was seen on CCTV accompanying Cole, who was carrying Logan’s body, to the river from Williamson’s home in the early hours of July 31, 2021, Wales Online reports.
He also assisted in discarding Logan’s ripped dinosaur pyjama in a second trip to the area near the River Ogmore and after daybreak he and Cole walked the streets shouting Logan’s name – having dumped his body in the river just hours earlier. Today, Cole, Williamson, and Mulligan were locked up for a combined total of 72 years with each handed life sentences.
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A trial at Cardiff Crown Court heard Logan suffered catastrophic injuries to his abdomen including a torn liver, bowel, and duodenum and a number of brain injuries as well as 56 cuts and bruises to his body. The injuries were likened to those seen in a high-velocity car crash or a fall from great height.
Logan died just a week after Mulligan came to live at Lower Llansantffraid after the family courts awarded custody of the teenager to Cole with the support of Williamson. It was later claimed by Williamson he had already admitted pushing Logan downstairs, causing him to break his arm, though during Thursday’s sentencing hearing judge Mrs Justice Jefford said she had not taken this into account as the evidence was “thoroughly unsatisfactory”.
He was placed into Logan’s home just five days before the murder after Cole and Williamson were granted custody of him. He had spent the previous six months in care and was heard making threats to kill Logan – who he referred to as “the five-year-old”.
Two days before Logan’s body was recovered from the river, Mulligan was said by Williamson to have attacked her son along with Cole. The court heard Cole punched Logan to the stomach two or three times and told Mulligan to “let him have it”.
Mulligan, who was trained in Muay Thai, was said to have swept Logan’s feet, knocking him to the floor while pressing his head against the floor. He was also said to have told his foster family he wanted to kill Logan.
Mulligan was found guilty of Logan’s murder at Cardiff Crown Court on April 21. He was sentenced alongside Cole and Williamson on Thursday when he was handed a life term with a minimum of 15 years.
Throughout the trial and sentencing hearing, Mulligan’s identity was protected by a court order under Section 45 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 due to the defendant being under 18 years old and legally considered a juvenile. This prevented the publication of his name, address, identity of school or educational establishment he attended, any place of work, or a still or moving image of him.
Once the guilty verdict had been delivered by the jury, an application was made by representatives of the media to revoke the Section 45 order. Following the sentencing of Cole, Williamson, and Mulligan the trial judge agreed to this application due to the serious nature of the conviction and Mulligan’s identity could be reported.
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