A 31-year-old man, Carl Wheatley, has been found guilty of beating his four-year-old daughter, Alex Marie, to death because he hated her mother so much, Mirror reports.
Father who pummelled 4yr old daughter to death found guilty of murder
A demented father has been arrested and charged for beating his four year old daughter to death.
Wheatley, according to reports, allegedly attacked his own daughter in a fit of rage, caused 66 injuries to her and knocked out two of her teeth over a series of savage attacks in the weeks running up to her death.
When he finally called emergency services, they discovered the lifeless body of the girl and during interrogation, he admitted he had lost his temper at his former wife.
The killer-dad had been granted custody of his daughter from her foster parents just three months before her death on March 12 last year, after convincing social workers he could look after her.
During the trial, the court heard that the young girl had probably been dead for several hours before paramedics arrived at their home in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. It was also revealed in court that prior to her death, Wheatley had searched online for how to treat bruising and repair teeth.
A post-mortem examination revealed she had died from extreme blunt force trauma and the jury heard Wheatley told emergency services:
"I got a bit frustrated and I harmed the poor child."
Detective Chief Inspector Jerome Kent from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit who led the investigation, said in court:
"Alexa-Marie suffered horrific injuries at the hands of her father, a man who should have been protecting her. Not only did he cause her such significant injury prior to her death, he failed to seek any help for her, leaving her to suffer.
Alexa-Marie, who has been described as a happy child prior to living with her father, died because he lost his temper and took his frustrations out on her.
At the age of four she was not able to protect herself from this violent man, who then went out of his way to ensure no one else could protect or help her either.
This is an extremely tragic case. No child should ever suffer in this way and our thoughts are with Alexa-Marie's family and those who cared for her."
JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!
Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:
Email: eyewitness@pulse.ng