Poppi Worthington died of asphyxia after sexual abuse in father’s bed, coroner rules

Toddler Poppi Worthington died from asphyxia and was sexually abused before her death, according to a coroner.

David Roberts said the child’s ability to breathe was compromised by an “unsafe” sleeping environment after her father Paul Worthington took her from her cot and placed her next to him in his bed.

At Kendal Coroner’s Court, he concluded she did not die immediately after the abuse in 2012 and it did not cause her death.

The coroner said an unlawful killing conclusion was not available to him as he was not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Poppi died due to murder or manslaughter.

During a three-week inquest in Cumbria, Mr Worthington refused to answer questions about her death 252 times and his account did not “stand up to scrutiny”, according to the coroner.

A family court judge ruled in January 2016 that “on the balance of probabilities” he had sexually assaulted Poppi before she died.

The father has denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with any offence as the Crown Prosecution Service says there is insufficient evidence.

He has been living in hiding since the family court proceedings were made public.

The inquest at Kendal Coroner’s Court was told the child woke up screaming at about 5.30am on 12 December 2012, at her home in Barrow-in-Furness and her father put her in his bed and went to get a fresh nappy.

Mr Worthington said that when he returned, she had settled but 5-10 minutes later he reached over and she was limp.

He claimed he then ran downstairs and the child’s mother, who was sleeping downstairs, called an ambulance.

Paramedics took the youngster to Furness General Hospital at 6.11am but she never regained consciousness and was pronounced dead shortly after 7am.

The pathologist who carried out Poppi’s post-mortem examination found Poppi’s injuries, including two fractures to her leg, to be strongly suspicious of child abuse.

Poppi’s mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, looked red-eyed and close to tears for much of Monday’s three-hour hearing.

Following the inquest, Cumbria Police chief constable Jerry Graham said he would discuss the case with the Crown Prosecution Service to “determine possible courses of action”.

Mr Worthington’s solicitors said the father was “considering his options”, adding that “we are advising him not to say anything further at this point”.

(c) Sky News 2018: Poppi Worthington died of asphyxia after sexual abuse in father’s bed, coroner rules