0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
A father who tortured his two sons during a "campaign of pure cruelty" has been told he faces a lengthy jail term. A jury at Bradford Crown Court found the Nigerian-born father guilty of three counts of unlawful wounding and eight counts of cruelty. The boys' mother was also found guilty of two counts of cruelty by wilfully failing to protect her sons. The couple, from Bradford, cannot be named for legal reasons and will be sentenced on 19 March. Judge Christopher Prince said they had "engaged in a long campaign of pure cruelty" using methods "described by your own counsel as torture to your own children". He added: "They must have lived in fear of coming under your gaze and your hand with the instruments that you used to cause such pain to them." The jury returned guilty verdicts on 13 of 14 counts against the couple. They were discharged after failing to reach a verdict on a charge of cruelty against the mother. The torture of the boys took place between September 2003 and February 2005. Children's courage During the trial, the court heard how the father would put clothes pegs on the boys' lips and tongues and pressed the tongue of one of the children with sharp pliers until it bled and became swollen. On one occasion, the court heard the father put a safety pin through the younger boy's bottom lip and left him tied to a chair overnight with a napkin tied round his eyes. Adjourning the case for pre-sentence reports, Judge Prince remanded both parents in custody. He told the mother: "You told the jury that you would do what you could to protect your children. That was a lie." Speaking after the verdicts, Det Insp Chris Stones said: "I would like to highlight the courage shown by these two young children throughout the course of the investigation and during the court proceedings. "It is believed the motive for this abuse was an extreme religious belief. This has been an isolated case for West Yorkshire Police."
