The detective who led the investigation into the murder of 13-month-old Preston Davey has described his killers as representing “pure evil,” as questions mount over how at least eight separate opportunities to protect the toddler were missed by professionals over the four months he was in their care.
Jamie Varley, 37, a textiles teacher who also served as head of year and safeguarding lead at a Blackpool comprehensive school, was convicted of Preston’s murder following a trial at Preston Crown Court, alongside 24 other charges including sexual assault, grievous bodily harm, cruelty, and taking and distributing indecent images. His partner, John McGowan-Fazakerley, 32, an accounts manager for a finance firm, was convicted of sexual assault, two counts of cruelty and allowing Preston’s death. As the verdicts were delivered on Monday, Varley fell to his knees and began dry retching in the dock, while McGowan-Fazakerley stared straight ahead, remaining emotionless throughout. Both will be sentenced on Thursday.
Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fallows of Lancashire Police said the case had left a lasting impression on the investigating team. “It is not often in this job that you encounter pure evil,” he said. “Anybody who has followed this trial will no doubt understand why I place Jamie Varley and John McGowan-Fazakerley in that category.” Fallows said Varley had attempted to manipulate the investigation from the outset, describing body-worn footage of his behaviour at the hospital following Preston’s death. “You can see he was walking around theatrically, threw himself to the floor at one point,” Fallows said. “I referred to it as a pantomime, and that’s very much how it felt, buying himself time to concoct a story to explain what he had done to that little boy.” He added: “I think Jamie Varley has sought to deceive right from day one. He is a manipulative character, or he certainly had tried to be, and we’ve been able to show him for what he is. I don’t see any evidence of regret, remorse or actual sorrow for Preston Davey. I think any tears have been around Jamie Varley, an arrogant, self-centred liar.”
A post-mortem examination found Preston had suffered more than 40 injuries by the time he died, including 30 visible bruises and serious internal injuries to his throat and bottom. The trial heard that in the weeks before his death, Varley had told a colleague he was experiencing “dark thoughts” about suffocating or drowning the boy. On the day Preston died, Varley claimed he had left the child alone in the bath for a couple of minutes and returned to find him submerged. Medics worked for 50 minutes in an unsuccessful attempt to save his life.
Despite the severity of what was happening, no professional intervened in time. Preston had been taken to hospital on three separate occasions, including with suspicious bruising and a broken elbow, and had been seen by what was described in court as a “battery of professionals,” with police even called to the home in the weeks before his death. The trial heard Varley, who had taken a year off work to care for Preston, resented being at home full-time while McGowan-Fazakerley continued working. Described as prolific on social media, Varley took hundreds of photographs and videos of the toddler, which detectives said were intended to present the couple as a “perfect” family to the outside world. Alongside images of Preston playing happily in the park or smiling in his high-chair, however, indecent photographs were later discovered on Varley’s phone.
Now, questions are being raised about whether concerns over how same-sex adoptive parents might be perceived contributed to the repeated failures to intervene. A senior social worker, speaking anonymously, said: “Questions need to be asked about whether these men were sufficiently challenged. Social workers can find it difficult to confront same-sex adoptive parents due to a fear of being seen as politically incorrect.” The source questioned whether officials had either been manipulated by a couple who were articulate, professionally employed and outwardly respectable, or whether judgement had been clouded by a desire to be seen to support diversity.
Preston’s birth grandmother, Debbie Davey, 66, echoed those concerns. “Social services might have been hesitant to take action when they saw Preston because they may have been accused of being homophobic,” she said. “They didn’t see through [Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley] and see what was going on.” Mrs Davey sobbed as the verdicts were delivered and said she was angry that no social worker had faced any consequences. “Everyone involved with Preston is still working,” she said. “That is not right.”
Preston was removed from his birth mother, Sarah Davey, 42, at just five days old in 2022. Sarah Davey was herself jailed at the age of 14 for the torture and murder of a pensioner in 1998. Preston spent his first night in the care of Varley and McGowan-Fazakerley at their Blackpool home at the end of March 2023 and died on 27 July that year, with his adoption not yet finalised at the time of his death. Responsibility for his care at that time lay with Oldham Council, which confirmed on Monday that no social workers had been disciplined or dismissed in connection with the case, though it said an independent child safeguarding practice review was under way. A council spokesman said: “Our thoughts remain with Preston’s family, loved ones, and the many people affected by this case,” adding that the authority was “thankful” both men had been convicted.
Around 3,000 children are adopted each year in England and Wales, including roughly 100 babies, with around one in five adopted children now placed with same-sex couples. There is no evidence of any greater risk of abuse among gay adoptive parents specifically. A spokesman for the NSPCC said Preston’s death would “leave many people asking how such a tragedy could have happened.”
If you have been affected by the issues raised in this article, support is available through the NSPCC helpline.
