Mother jailed for concealing daughter in drawer for three years

A woman has received a prison sentence of seven years and six months for “extreme neglect” after concealing her infant daughter in a drawer for the initial three years of the child’s life. Prosecutors stated that the girl had “never known daylight or fresh air.” Her discovery occurred when a visitor to the family’s Cheshire residence overheard her crying. For the girl’s protection, her identity and that of her family members remain undisclosed. The mother, having previously pleaded guilty to four counts of child cruelty, received her sentence at Chester Crown Court. WARNING: The following contains details which some may find distressing Judge Steven Everett commented that the woman had “starved that little girl of any love, any proper affection, any proper attention, any interaction with others, a proper diet, much-needed medical attention.” He further stated, “An intelligent little girl who is now perhaps slowly coming to life, from what was almost a living death in that room.” Testimony presented in court indicated that the mother hid the baby in the drawer of her divan bed, thereby concealing her existence from her other children and her partner, who frequently resided at the home. Rachel Worthington of the Crown Prosecution Service reported that upon discovery, the child did not react to her own name and had been abandoned for extended durations to “fend for herself” with insufficient nourishment. The court heard that the girl suffered from severe malnutrition, appearing like a seven-month-old infant rather than a three-year-old, and was fed milky Weetabix via a syringe. Additionally, she presented with a cleft palate and various other medical conditions for which her mother had failed to seek treatment. The crimes spanned from early 2020 to early 2023, concluding with the girl’s discovery after a visitor to the residence heard a sound from an upper floor and located her on a bed. Following the discovery, a social worker was summoned to the house and recounted her “overwhelming horror” upon entering the bedroom and witnessing the scene. The child exhibited matted hair, deformities, and rashes. The social worker stated: “I looked at her mum and asked, ‘Is this where you keep her?’ The mother replied matter-of-factly, ‘Yes, in the drawer’.” She continued: “I was shocked the mother did not show any emotion…” And added: “It became an overwhelming horror that I was probably the only other face [the girl] had seen apart from her mother’s.” The court received information regarding the severe developmental problems the child, currently in foster care, suffered due to the neglect. During a police interview, the woman claimed she was unaware of her pregnancy and felt “really scared” upon giving birth. She asserted that the baby was not continuously kept in the drawer beneath the bed, and that the drawer remained open. She informed officers that the child was “not part of the family.” The mother was observed wiping away tears while recounting that her other children, whom she reportedly cared for adequately, no longer resided with her. Judge Everett remarked that the woman’s actions “totally defied belief.” He stated, “You attempted to control this situation as carefully as you could but by sheer chance your terrible secret was discovered.” He concluded, “I don’t remember a case as bad as this in my 46 years.”