Couple guilty of biting and battering toddler

The jury found the single mother and her ex-boyfriend guilty at Exeter Crown Court

A mother and her ex-boyfriend have been found guilty of biting, battering and force feeding a 17-month-old toddler.

Doctors found 18 different areas of injury on the boy's head and body.

The mother, formerly of Seaton but now living in Mid Devon, and her former partner, of Bridport, Dorset, both denied child cruelty or neglect.

They were both found guilty by a jury at Exeter Crown Court, but sentencing was adjourned until January.

The former couple had just moved to Seaton from Dorset in January 2018 when a pharmacy worker noticed bruising on the child's face and alerted social workers.

A week earlier, a mother at a playgroup in Dorset had contacted the NSPCC to report concerns after seeing injuries.

The child was taken by social workers to the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital where paediatricians confirmed the injuries were not accidental.

They believed a round mark on the boy's shoulder had been caused by a bite and found significant areas of bruising on his face consistent with punches.

During a two week trial, the jury were told that the boyfriend had inflicted the injuries and the mother had failed to protect her child from him or seek medical help earlier.

The boyfriend, 36, denied hurting the toddler claiming he was a "whirlwind" who kept bumping into pillars, tables and had fallen down the stairs onto a skirting board.

The mother, 25, had been bringing up her son on her own before she met her partner through Tinder in 2017.

The child was taken into foster care immediately, where it was noted that he was not particularly clumsy and did not suffer any new bruises.

Judge Timothy Rose adjourned the sentences to allow pre-sentence reports to be compiled.