Father who killed baby daughter guilty of murder

Everleigh Stroud spent more than a year of her life in hospital after being shaken by her father

A father has been found guilty of murdering his baby daughter after he told a court he could not remember what happened the night she suffered severe injuries.

Thomas Holford admitted the manslaughter of Everleigh Stroud, after the five-week-old baby suffered "violent shaking" when she spent the night alone with him in the bedroom he shared with her teenage mother in Ramsgate.

The court previously heard how Holford, 25, claimed he had no memory of the incident, and he had smoked multiple cannabis joints on the evening he attacked his daughter.

The jury at Canterbury Crown Court found him guilty of murder and causing actual bodily harm. He will be sentenced on Friday.

Everleigh was rushed to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) in Margate on the morning of April 21, 2021, when her grandmother reported she was "only just" breathing.

Thomas Holford will be sentenced on Friday

Holford showed "little emotion" and continued to download and play games on his phone when police arrived at the scene, jurors heard.

His daughter died when her life support machine was turned off a year after the attack, which left her with severe injuries to her brain, ribs and legs.

Holford lied to police about his cannabis use, and while giving evidence, he told jurors he had at least five joints on the night before Everleigh was taken to hospital.

When asked by prosecution barrister Eloise Marshall KC why he had lied about his cannabis use, he said: "I'm trying to project an image of something that is better than reality."

At the time of the attack, Holford was living with his then 16-year-old girlfriend and her parents at an address in Wallwood Road.

During the trial, defence barrister Jo Martin KC said that Holford showed no planning, premeditation or motive before killing his daughter.

She said: "This cack-handed, cannabis-fuelled young man would try everything he would normally do to work out why she was crying and then he would move on to stopping that crying."

But Ms Marshall told the court that Holford "would have known he would have caused that child really serious harm" by shaking her with "extreme force".

Police discovered several cannabis joints near the baby's bottle

While in the witness box, he often answered questions to the effect of being unsure or not remembering what had happened.

"When it suits you, you have a memory - and when it doesn't suit you, you pretend you don't have a memory," said Ms Marshall.

'No emotion'

Det Insp Ross Gurden said: "Through the investigation, Thomas Holford has failed to tell the truth and accept responsibility for his actions. He will now be facing a long custodial sentence."

An NSPCC spokesperson said: "Holford's brutal attack on his baby daughter destroyed her life and ultimately caused her death.

"Our thoughts are with all those who loved and cared for Everleigh during her short life – the majority of which was spent on life support following the assault by her father."

Will Bodiam, from the CPS, said Holford showed "no emotion" after his daughter was rushed to intensive care, and instead continued to download games on his phone, "even asking one of the police officers to help him choose a game".

He added: "Holford's actions left his daughter in unimaginable pain for the next year before her death."