The texts of his violent intent, the holes he smashed through the living room door and CCTV footage of him dragging Arthur around like an animal exposed his real 'short-tempered, wicked' nature. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. You did this to him.". Despite the challenges, he was a happy and cheeky child who was adored by his extended family. Suite 325 Cincinnati, OH 45211. Another unusual feature was the fact Tustin obsessively recorded more than 200 voice notes of Arthur during lockdown. Arthur wasn't just her only son, Labinjo-Halcrow said, but her best friend with a gentle and caring nature. The trial took a number of twists and turns as the prosecution detailed how Arthur was made to stand in isolation for up to 14 hours a day, was assaulted, deprived of food and water as well as poisoned with salt. A jury has now convicted dad Thomas Hughes of manslaughter and step-mother Emma Tustin of murder. I realise now I made it a lot harder for myself. No-one else. She said: "I was not near Arthur. Teachers reported Arthur was becoming fixated with his dad disappearing from his life, or killing him, and had also become obsessed with death, murder and guns. He was made to sleep there even when the other children slept elsewhere. He was rushed to hospital following the incident on June 16 2020, but despite the best efforts of medical staff, it was determined that nothing could be done to save him and he sadly lost his life at 1am the following day. Arthur's grandmother Joanne Hughes made a social services report on April 16, 2020, after discovering bruises to his back, which she suspected had been caused by Tustin. Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. He told the jury he 'reluctantly' maintained Arthur's punishment to avoid arguments admitting he put Tustin's 'love and attention' above his son's welfare. She would send them to Hughes when he was out of the home to 'report' his son's behaviour. Ms Kavanagh said both children indicated they felt they were 'very happy and very safe'. The couple used insults such as "Satan", "Hitler", "Devilchild", "weasel" and various swear words to refer to the boy. They uncovered significant evidence of abuse inflicted on Arthur by both. Hughes confessed to treating Arthur 'like a prisoner' by making him stay in the hallway for the 'majority of the time', adding his discipline had 'gone horribly wrong'. The child collapsed to the floor as they left the hairdresser's but was not helped by either Tustin or Thomas when he arrived. Hughes's following comment to officers proved to be telling: "Emma isn't a suspect, she's a witness. This culminated on 17 June 2020 with Tustin[a] killing Arthur[b] via blunt force trauma to his head. Tustin was subsequently found guilty of child cruelty counts 4 (deprivation of food and drink) and 5 (salt poisoning). What made this case so unique was the fact there was a camera installed in the living room of Tustin's home. Hughes was repeatedly asked why he did not stand up for Arthur. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes. UK - Arthur Labinjo Hughes, 6, killed, dad & friend from www.websleuths.com Trial begins as court hears parents 'murdered' him after months of abuse | daily mail online another heartbreaking . Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: A life cut short by cruelty - BBC News "At the time I thought I was doing the right thing by my unborn child. I don't want Emma to suffer.". Arthur's grandmother, Mrs Halcrow, agrees. May 2020: Tustins stepfather, John Dutton, said he made an anonymous referral to social services because he felt Arthur was in danger. Shown footage demonstrating how Arthur was made to spend all day in the hallway and then sleep on the living room floor he said: "You are not here to watch television and comment on it. Thomas Hughes introduced his son to Tustin early on in the relationship and she later stated that she and Arthur were 'friends straight away'. Tustin had been repeatedly lacing his food and drink with it. Tustin would record more than 200 clips of him in distress, including two particularly harrowing recordings where Arthur is heard begging in tears, "I want you to feed me, no one's going to feed me" and crying "no one loves me". Tustin bombarded Hughes with messages complaining of the child's behaviour as his condition worsened. When Labinjo-Halcrow[d] killed her partner in February 2019, responsibility for the boy was transferred to his father. Tustin could be heard 'policing' Arthur in some of the clips barking 'stand still, stand still'. The vast majority of the recordings were of Arthur crying. Kidney consultant Dr Malcolm Coulthard told the court that when Arthur arrived at hospital he was suffering from severe hypernatremia - raised sodium levels. Hughes told police he 'turned into a monster' during lockdown and that 'Arthur took the brunt of my frustrations unfairly'. Hughes confessed to treating Arthur 'like a prisoner' by making him stay in the hallway for the 'majority of the time', adding his discipline had 'gone horribly wrong'. I don't want them to suffer. As he grew weaker and struggled to stand, Arthur would be punished further if he tried to move or sit down in the hallway. Shown footage demonstrating how Arthur was made to spend all day in the hallway and then sleep on the living room floor he said: "You are not here to watch television and comment on it. The jury were told how Arthur was made to stand in isolation for up to 14 hours a day, was frequently assaulted, deprived of food and water as well as poisoned with salt. Just a few months later, he was gaunt, malnourished and too weak to hold a glass of water Mr Jarman had smuggled him. Tustin had bizarrely claimed she had a spare camera left over from putting up CCTV outside due to 'problems with neighbours coming into the garden and putting holes in her clothes'. She was asked to retrieve her notes of the visit and return to the witness box at a later stage in the trial. 16 April 2020: Joanne Hughes reported Arthur to social services after taking photographs of bruises on his back, which she discovered when Hughes and Arthur visited. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Killer father has sentence increased Mr Hankin branded her a 'pitiless, cruel woman' who 'hated' Arthur. Hospital affiliations include Fisher Titus Medical Center. The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure. His treasured possessions, including a favourite blanket, teddy bear and his beloved Birmingham City football shirts, were torn up and destroyed before his eyes by an enraged Hughes as another twisted punishment. Tustin was subsequently found guilty of child cruelty counts 4 (deprivation of food and drink) and 5 (salt poisoning). Hughes returned home and a 999 call was made at 2.42pm. Thomas Hughes, Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Emma Tustin He told the jury at Coventry Crown Court he was forced to stay at Tustin's home when the first lockdown was announced in March 2020.. 17 April 2020: Social worker Jayne Kavanagh from Solihull council visited Tustins home. The court also heard Tustin wanted the CCTV because she was fearful of Arthur making allegations about her. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes, six, died of a brain injury on 17 June 2020. Arguably the most heart-breaking clip to watch was Arthur being so weak on the morning of his collapse that he barely had the strength to carry his bedding out of the living room, where he had been forced to sleep. She organised a meeting with Arthur's father and grandmother about her concerns that the boy was developing an obsession with topics such as guns, death and the news, along with fears about being separated from or killed by his father. Since that moment, Tustin has sought to deflect blame. The incident was later reported to the police again by Arthur's uncle with no effect. The camera also recorded the couple and Tustin's children enjoying food and leisure activities which Arthur was not allowed to participate in. "Just end him," one message read. Arthur was conspicuous by his absence on the camera for long periods despite the fact both defendants would often be in the living room talking, gesticulating or shouting towards the hallway. Detectives used the footage to establish that Arthur spent almost all day in the hallway in the run-up to his death. Between June 12 to June 14 he was ordered to stay there for more than 35 hours in total. Thomas Hughes and his girlfriend Emma Tustin are jointly accused of murdering Arthur Labinjo-Hughes at her home in Shirley, Solihull, on 17 June 2020. She claimed she followed an 'old wives' tale' in her family and used it to relieve pain and burning on her genitals - caused by the long-term effects of trying to take her own life in 2013 by jumping from a car park. November 2019: Hughes and his mother, Joanne, met staff at Arthurs school to discuss their growing concerns about his behaviour. [9], Tustin is believed to have carried out the fatal assault at 2:29p.m when she went into the hallway, where Arthur was located. [17] The incident provoked discussion of the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the welfare of vulnerable children. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes died in hospital several hours after he was found unresponsive at a house on Cranmore Road in Shirley, near Birmingham 'Bullying' parents 'poisoned' their six-year-old son. He told Tustin to 'just end' Arthur, 'take his jaw off' and 'gag' him, while he threatened to 'take his neck off' and 'dash my food off his head'. The prosecutor stated social services were presented with a 'false picture'. She broke down in tears numerous times in the stand, prompting Hughes' barrister to ask 'who are you crying for now?' The prosecutor said Ms Tustin recorded more than 200 audio files of Arthur in "various stages of distress". The couple were struck by the state of the boy they had last seen in February. Hughes was found not guilty on counts 4 and 5. Anne Longfield, the former children's commissioner for England, said:[18], "a lot of the services went on to the screens for children, and this child in particular, Arthur, wasnt in school. The following day social worker Jayne Kavanagh visited the address at Cranmore Road accompanied by Angela Scarlett-Coppage, a family support worker who had dealt with Tustin before in her previous relationship. Tustin also laid her cards on the table to Hughes over text and said: "I want you but not him.". In another, the fear stricken boy yelled 'daddy's going to throw me out the window'. 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Hughes told police he 'turned into a monster' during lockdown and that 'Arthur took the brunt of my frustrations unfairly'. In light of the revelations a juror asked if they were seriously expected to believe Hughes was not guilty of any child cruelty offence. The boy was mistreated over the course of several months by his father, Thomas Hughes, and his father's partner, Emma Tustin. He added: "Over the course of 17 months a lot has been put to me I was not previously aware of regarding Emma and it has made me see Emma in a completely different light. At best her evidence was inconsistent, at worst, her testimony was an utter shambles. So theres a big lesson there, instantly about if there is a crisis, there are children who are going to slip from view and we have to make sure they have the protection, which does need face to face contact. She broke down in tears numerous times in the stand, prompting Hughes' barrister to ask 'who are you crying for now?' All it did was underline her inhumane treatment of her step-son. Court shown footage of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes' 'final moments' after The camera in the living room captured Arthur slumped on the floor. Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow is referred to using her surname throughout this article. The vast majority of the recordings were of Arthur crying. He was monitored on CCTV set up around the home, cameras that would eventually capture Tustin callously trying to administer Calpol to the boy she had murdered just out of view in the hallway. It did not add up that he had apparently confessed his guilt to officers and yet went on to deny all the charges against him. The monster even had the gall to claim the boy was making her life 'hell'. The child is growing up without a dad. In the witness box told the jury he was simply covering for Tustin, who he now 'hated' and saw in a 'completely different light'. "I effectively killed my son. Hughes was found guilty of child cruelty counts 2 (standing in isolation) and 3 (assaults). She doesn't need it.". The secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure. However, in February 2019, Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow stabbed her new abusive partner to death in an alcohol and drug fuelled rage. The murder of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was a tragedy. She was asked to retrieve her notes of the visit and return to the witness box at a later stage in the trial. Prosecutors said his head was "banged. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. Mr Hughes, 29, of Stroud Road, and Ms Tustin allegedly forced Arthur to endure "systematic, cruel behaviour", both "physical and psychological" in the weeks before he died. I'm guilty of all of this. [26][27][28] Mister Justice Mark Wall, the presiding judge, described the case in his sentencing remarks as among the most "distressing and disturbing" cases that he has dealt with. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes collapsed of fatal injuries at a home in Cranmore Road, Shirley on June 16, last year, and died hours later in hospital from unsurvivable brain trauma. However Tustin repeatedly said the police would 'put it on both of us' and added: "None of us are going to walk away from this.". Warning - this article contains distressing content. Tustin maintained she has used salt for the same purpose whilst being in custody. It emerged that after Tustin and Hughes each gave one police interview they travelled in the back of a police van together where their conversations were 'covertly recorded'. [12] Tustin then took a photo of the dying boy, which she sent to Hughes. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was the son of Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow and Thomas Hughes. I just heard it. Joshua Hughes - CEO and Legal Counsel - LinkedIn His father Thomas Hughes and partner Emma Tustin deny the boy's murder and multiple counts of child cruelty. His blood sodium levels were 'off the scale', measuring over 180millimoles per litre (mmol/L) compared to a normal range of 135-145 mmol/L. [11] Paramedics from West Midlands Ambulance Service and officers from West Midlands Police arrived on scene shortly after the emergency call was made. It was made plain to her that the consensus medical opinion was that Arthur could not have caused his fatal head injuries himself, and yet still she blamed him for his own death. Furious inmates 'toss salt at killer stepmum' who tortured Arthur Labinjo-Hughes", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Father and stepmother's prison sentences to be reviewed", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: 'A bruise for every day of lockdown' left on body of boy killed by father and stepmother", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Emma Tustin sentenced to life and Thomas Hughes 21 years for torturing and killing six-year-old", High Court Judgement: Regina - v Emma Tustin & THomas Hughes Sentencing Remarks, "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Killer father has sentence increased", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: review launched into six-year-old's murder", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: National inquiry into boy's death", "Timeline of the key missed opportunities leading up to Arthur's death revealed", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Murder_of_Arthur_Labinjo-Hughes&oldid=1143956977, This page was last edited on 10 March 2023, at 23:33. Hughes later told Tustin he had 'basically held my hands up'. She flip-flopped from her original account to police; from being in the hallway when he supposedly 'cracked' his own head off the floor to being elsewhere, from the first of four cracks being the loudest to the last of them being the loudest, from being present when Arthur apparently knocked himself out to being somewhere else. Ms Tustin took pictures and recorded audio clips and videos of Arthur being punished, sending them to Mr Hughes, jurors were told. By the end of the month, Arthur was moved out of Tustin's son and daughter's bedroom and made to sleep on the living room floor. Several parallels were noted between the cases such as both children being killed by their parent's new partner, having extended family who tried to help them, and being of known concern to the authorities. The prosecutor argued her explanation did not 'bear scrutiny' and accused Tustin of poisoning Arthur with salt during the 22-minute period she was upstairs 'doing my eyebrows' on June 16. List of child abuse cases featuring long-term detention, "Online directories- LABINJO-HUGHES, Arthur (Adjourned)", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Images show tragic little boy smiling with his mother before she lost joint custody after killing partner", "What happened to Arthur Labinjo-Hughes? Ms Kavanagh insisted she only saw a single 'faint' bruise on Arthur's back and not the marks visible in the picture taken just 26 hours earlier, despite an expert saying they would not have faded by then. Thomas Hughes, Arthur Labinjo-Hughes and Emma Tustin. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes suffered a fatal collapse while at Emma Tustin's home in Solihull All the while, Arthur was cut off from those who loved him and could help him. He died on 17 June 2020. Ms Kavanagh repeated she had 'no safeguarding concerns' about Arthur. Ms Kavanagh repeated she had 'no safeguarding concerns' about Arthur. Below we have listed the significant evidence and developments in the trial.The fly on the wall. For three months, his life was dictated by a cruel punishment regime enforced by Emma Tustin and Thomas Hughes. She flip-flopped from her original account to police; from being in the hallway when he supposedly 'cracked' his own head off the floor to being elsewhere, from the first of four cracks being the loudest to the last of them being the loudest, from being present when Arthur apparently knocked himself out to being somewhere else. Hughes was repeatedly asked why he did not stand up for Arthur. [11] She is being held at HMP Peterborough. The pair also face an allegation of child cruelty by administering salt to Arthur between 1 and 17 June last year. More on Arthur Labinjo-hughes - Sky News [15] More broadly the child was honoured at various football matches on 4 December 2021. He tried to seduce Tustin to have sex while Arthur was in the hallway, and in one text he told her to 'put him outside or wherever, give him away, put him out with the rubbish'. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. In the witness box told the jury he was simply covering for Tustin, who he now 'hated' and saw in a 'completely different light'. 'Poisoned' boy, 6, struggles to stand before dad and stepmom 'tortured [13] Arthur was left with an unsurvivable brain injury. ", "How lockdown was beginning of the end for tragic Arthur - timeline", "Coronavirus: UK schools, colleges and nurseries to close from Friday", "Coronavirus: Strict new curbs on life in UK announced by PM", "UK launches major review into murder of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Father and girlfriend found guilty over death of six-year-old boy", "Stepmother and father convicted of killing Arthur Labinjo-Hughes", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Candlelit vigil for murdered boy", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Football club's tribute to young fan", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Football pays tribute to murdered Birmingham City fan after killers jailed", "Social workers forced out of homes due to abuse after Arthur Labinjo-Hughes case", "Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: vulnerable children 'slipped from view' in pandemic", "How much did lockdown help Arthur Labinjo-Hughes' killers escape notice? Prosecutors said his head was "banged repeatedly against a hard surface" causing an "unsurvivable brain injury". Arthur Labinjo-Hughes is referred to using his first name throughout this article due to his age. But her words did not wash with prosecutor Jonas Hankin who completely skewered her during cross-examination. He said the messages were so constant they became 'boring', and he stopped listening to them. Arthur's case was "horrendous, horrific and heart-breaking," the NSPCC said and the charity called for the serious case review to "establish the lessons that need to be learned to prevent this awful case from happening again". No-one else. Photograph: West Midlands Police/PA Child. She said his physical appearance seemed fine and, as his aggression and anxiety had reduced, she concluded there was no mental health issue. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes (4 January 2014 - 17 June 2020) was a six-year-old child living in the West Midlands, England who was abused and subsequently killed by his carers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Arthur Labinjo-Hughes: Father 'probably' valued partner over son He tried to seduce Tustin to have sex while Arthur was in the hallway, and in one text he told her to 'put him outside or wherever, give him away, put him out with the rubbish'. The child was secretly given a drink of water by the hairdresser's partner, who later described him as "gaunt", "malnourished" and "a poor little kid who was broken". Her partner, Tobias Jarman, snuck the boy a glass of water without Tustin and Hughes knowing, and said he looked petrified. Mrs Hughes spotted extensive bruising on her grandson's back and he'd told her Tustin had slammed him into the stairs, calling him an "ugly, horrible brat". Join Breaking News and Incidents in Yorkshire, Desperate plight of tragic Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was 'missed because of Covid' says social work boss, Emma Tustin and Thomas Hughes indulged in hot tubs and ice cream as Arthur left starving and alone. I'm guilty of all of this. Six-year-old Arthur from Solihull, West Midlands, was poisoned, starved and beaten during a campaign of abuse by stepmother Emma Tustin, 32, and his father Thomas Hughes, 29, during the weeks. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. Dr Coulthard concluded Arthur was salt poisoned stating it could have occurred incrementally but that he would have had to have been given a large dose of the kitchen condiment in the hours immediately before he collapsed.