Bowburn couple convicted after abusing several children

The pair have been remanded in custody

A couple who abused children by making them eat soap, forcing them into boiling showers and leaving them to scavenge for food have been convicted.

Andrew Hadwin, 39, and Cheryl Pickles, 35, of Bowburn, County Durham, neglected children over the course of a number of years, Durham Police said.

One child was left with life-limiting injuries following the neglect, which included being locked in a cupboard.

Both defendants have been remanded in custody to be sentenced on 28 April.

Hadwin was found guilty of seven counts of child neglect and one of perverting the course of justice. He was also found guilty of rape in relation to non-recent abuse of another child. He was found not guilty of sexual activity with a child.

Pickles was found guilty of five counts of child cruelty and one of perverting the course of justice. She was found not guilty of sexual activity with a child.

'Painful injuries'

Both had denied all charges, resulting in a seven-week trial at Teesside Crown Court.

Detectives found that Hadwin and Pickles limited the children's access to food and made them watch the couple eat takeaways.

The children were also made to stand in stress positions for long periods of time. Medical experts told the court that the children regularly suffered painful injuries

The pair also wrote letters claiming to be from the children in which they apologised for making false allegations.

A handwriting expert confirmed they were not written by the children, and had actually been written in a notebook found at the couple's home.