Beyond Depravity: The Death of Preston Davey

Last week Jamie Varley was given a whole life sentence for the murder of Preston Davey, a 13-month-old boy he was in the process of adopting with his boyfriend John McGowan-Fazakerley. I covered the trial, which heard shocking evidence that the little boy was sexually abused for weeks or months prior to his death. In this episode I tell you the full story, including the moving words of Preston's biological mother, but I have deliberately omitted the most obscene and disturbing evidence.  

Transcript

Copy Transcript Copied

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hello and welcome back to the Total Crime Podcast. This is episode nineteen. And today I'm going to tell you a very dark tale. Last week, as you may have heard in the news, a former teacher was jailed for life for the murder of a thirteen month old boy called Preston Davy. Jamie Varley and his boyfriend John McGowan Fazakele were in the process of adopting Preston at the time of his death. I covered the trial, which took place at Preston Crown Court, and I can honestly say it was gruelling. I really feel for the jurors who sat on it and had to listen to all the facts. It was truly horrific. So in today's episode, I'm gonna spare you the full story. I'm not gonna go into the worst of the details, but they are just beyond your worst imagination. Now, adoption and fostering is an issue I know a fair deal about. For a year between twenty eleven and twenty twelve, I sat on the fostering and adoption panel of a London council. It was a really eye-opening experience, and it was humbling to hear about some of the foster carers and indeed the social workers. It was also extremely sad to read some of the files and the details of some of the birth parents. For example, one woman in particular I remember was a drug addict who repeatedly got pregnant, had children who would then be taken into care and every time she asked, Can I keep this one? And the answer was always no. Because at the end of the day, she was putting a drug habit first. Now it should be stated that in the vast majority of cases, adoption is successful and children who would have been at risk with their birth parent or parents thrive with their adopted parents and form permanent and loving bonds. But there are exceptions. And in a handful of cases, literally a tiny percentage of the total, adopted children are abused. In Preston Davies case, the abuse was at the extreme of the scale. And there have been those who suggested that S Oldham Council's social services department did not step in because they were worried about being accused of being homophobic. A supposedly independent safeguarding review is currently underway and we'll look into that allegation as well as the whole picture. But let me tell you the full story from day one. Day one was sixteenth of June twenty twenty two when Preston Elijah Davy was born, the son of Sarah Davy and Gary Nolan. In nineteen ninety-eight, when she was just fourteen, Sarah Davy murdered a pensioner at her home in Failsworth, Greater Manchester. The victim, Lily Lily, was seventy-one and was attacked by Davy and her friend Lisa Healy. The details of the crime are horrific. The girl squirted shampoo in Mrs. Lily's eyes, then bundled her into her home and gagged her while they looked for something to steal. They made hundreds of phone calls while in her home. Mrs. Lily eventually choked on her own dentures, and the teenagers panicked and put her body in a wheelie bin which they pushed into the nearby Rochdale Canal, where it was discovered three days later. When she was sentenced, Mr. Justice Sachs described it as an unspeakably wicked crime. Davy was released from prison in twenty thirteen, but repeatedly breached the terms of her license and was returned to jail seven times. She got pregnant with Preston, but was back in jail by the time he was born. Five days after he was born, and she named him Preston, he was taken into the care of Oldham Council's social services and placed with foster carers Sandra Cooper and her husband, Paul. The Coopers have been looking after children for twenty seven years, mostly newborn babies, and Preston was the forty third child they'd been asked to look after. Giving evidence, Mrs. Cooper said he was just beautiful. He was happy, he laughed, he smiled really early, he was a really lovely baby, he loved cuddles, he had really nice eye contact, he was just having a really nice life. The Coopers lived in the Manchester area. Sixty miles northwest is Blackpool, a seaside resort town which was once the go to holiday destination for people in the north of England. It was there that Jamie Varley, a school teacher and his boyfriend John McGowan for Zakley, lived. Same-sex couples have only been allowed to adopt in children in England and Wales since December two thousand five when the Adoption and Children Act came into force following lobbying by gay and lesbian groups. One of Britain's biggest adoption agencies, Quorum, says that now one in five adoptions involve same-sex couples. Varley and his partner first applied to become adopt adoptive parents in December 2021 and were finally approved in January 2023. It was then simply a case of waiting for a suitable baby to become available. Preston Davy just happened to be the next baby on the adoption conveyor belt. In the spring of 2023, Oldham Council confirmed that Vale and his partner could adopt Preston, and there was a handover process which was due to last several weeks. When Sandra Cooper gave evidence, she went into a lot of detail about this and how she felt Varley and his partner were not completely honest with her. Suddenly, during the process, Varley made a complaint about the Coopers. It was a completely baseless complaint, but it really upset Sandra who took it personally. Varley was represented in court by top barrister Nick Johnson KC, who incidentally was the prosecutor in the Lucy Leppy case. When he ha asked her about the complaint, she said it was a complaint that was not justified and it was a reason not to see us again. It was like a day of mourning that day, she said, choking up with emotion. After Preston died, Sandra looked back with hindsight and realized the complaint was a tactical decision by Varley to keep her away from the child. Now the original trial at Preston Crown Court collapsed after just two days for legal reasons which I don't need to go into. But when it restarted a few days later, the prosecution decided not to call Sandra Cooper as a live witness and instead just read out a statement she had made. I found that quite odd as her evidence had been so powerful. But there may be reasons which I don't know w which explain why she didn't testify a second time. Anyway, Preston was adopted by Varley and his partner and then four months later he was dead. The events of twenty seventh of Jul the events of the twenty-seventh of july twenty twenty three were the heart of the case. At six thirty PM that day, Preston was brought into the A and E department of Blackpool Victoria Hospital by Varley and his partner. The toddler was already in a state of cardiac arrest. Prosecutor Peter Wright said despite the best efforts of the medical staff on duty at the hospital, Preston was in terminal decline, and at 718 PM he was pronounced dead. In my sub stack, I posted foot video footage of the scene in the hospital when Varley was told that Preston was dead. I recommend you watch it on uh YouTube. You can probably just Google uh Jamie Varley Blackpool Hospital or Total Crime YouTube and you'll find the clip. But I'm going to uh play it now. The prosecutor told the jury that Varley's hysterical performance was a charade calculated to lead away rather than towards what had really happened that afternoon. Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fallows, who headed the investigation into Preston's death, described Varley's performance as very theatrical. Varley would later say that he had momentarily left Preston in the bath and then found him face down in the water. But his version of events did not match up with the evidence or the results of the post-mortem examination. There was no sign of drowning, and the pathologist said the cause of death was obstruction of the upper airways, possibly by the insertion of an object or object into his mouth. Now, I'm not going to go into any more detail, but let's just say the evidence suggested Preston had been sexually assaulted by Vale over a number of weeks or months. Detectives would find incriminating images and videos on Varley's phone, which suggested he had an extremely unhealthy sexual interest in the little boy. There was evidence of cruelty also, such as a 43-second video taken of Preston in his cart. In the video taken about 9 o'clock at night, Preston is clearly trying to fall asleep, while Varley is blasting the theme tune from the Disney song Moana at full volume in the toddler's bedroom. And then, just as he's dozing off, shouts Boo. The trial judge would later describe it as a chilling and deliberate act of sleep deprivation. During the trial, both Varley and his partner gave evidence, and I've gone into great detail about what they said in my Turtle Crime Substack. Varley claimed it was still a mystery why Preston died. While it seemed to accept that Preston hadn't drowned, he denied abusing him or causing his death in any way. In fact, he made himself out to be a victim. He said at one point, I feel we have not been able to grieve. We are still looking for answers. I know their opinion and viewpoint is wrong and couldn't be further from the truth. I'm lost for words. One of Varley's friends and work colleagues, Harley Wilson, told the police that he had asked her to box up and throw away some sex toys shortly after Preston's death. Varley claimed he'd simply wanted to put them in boxes because the couple were about to move house. Harley was very much mistaken in what she implied, he said. But when the time came for him to be cross-examined, Mr. Wright tore him to pieces. The prosecutor said, This little boy was your plaything, and you routinely abused him for your own gratification, didn't you? That's incorrect, he said. All of this within four months of him coming into your home and leaving him dead, said Mr. Wright. He did pass away in our care, yes, Varley replied. Mr. Wright said, you are physically and sexually abusing that little boy. No, he said.

unknown 12:38

Mr.

SPEAKER_01 12:38

Wright said you are jointly abusing him. No, that boy has never been sexually abused, sir.

unknown 12:45

Mr.

SPEAKER_01 12:46

Wright went on. The reality is that you killed that little boy. The reality is very much wrong, sir, replied Varley, whose answer didn't actually make much sense. Mr. Wright ended his cross-examination by accusing Varley of murdering Preston. And then he replied, No, sir, our little boy was not sexually abused or murdered or even hit. When McGowan for Zakley gave evidence, he practically threw Varley under a bus. He portrayed Vale as a drama queen who loved being the centre of attention, which I am no doubt he was. But he played down his own role in the abuse or downright denied it. But it emerged during the trial that Varley and McGowan for Zakley had lived together for two years after Preston died. Asked by his barrister why he'd not broken up with Varley after Preston's death, he said, I tried to mend it. I tried to mend it. I didn't think anything had gone on that was untoward. It was an accident. And I just wanted to try and let the investigation take its course and start getting some answers as to what's happened, he said. In his closing speech, Mr. Wright said Varley's warped sexual interest in Preston was evident within weeks of the adoption handover from Sandra Cooper. And he said McGowan for Zakley shared it and was involved in some of it himself. Preston's death was a tragedy waiting to happen.

unknown 14:14

Mr.

SPEAKER_01 14:15

McGowan for Zakley knew that, but chose to ignore it, said Mr. Wright. DCI Fallows, the SIO in the case, said Jamie Varley had sought to deceive right from day one. He said of Varley and McGowan for Zakley that the picture they'd tried to present to the outside world was one of respectability. The truth is far more sinister and darker than that. After the verdict, Oldham Council issued a statement the death of any child is tragic, but this is a particularly heart-wrenching and disturbing case. They said, We are thankful that the perpetrators of the sickening murder and abuse of an innocent child have today been convicted for their crimes. Adoption now, an agency which covers Oldham and several other council areas in Manchester, also issued a statement in which they said this was a deeply upsetting case, and our thoughts are with everyone affected by those these truly awful crimes. They said adoption now follows a strict and rigorous process in line with all relevant legislation and guidance in the assessment and approval of adopters. Matt MacGyver, the Chief Operating Officer of the Trust, which now runs South Shore Academy, where Varley worked, said that he had been immediately suspended at the time of his arrest and was dismissed in August 2025. On Thursday, the 18th of June 2026, Vali was given a whole life sentence for murder, meaning he will never be released. And Gowan Vazakali was jailed for 25 years for causing and allowing the death of a child and several other offences. At the sentencing hearing, the court heard a victim impact statement from Preston's mother, Sarah Davy, the convicted killer I referred to earlier. She said, Preston Paul Arlo Davy was perfect from the moment he was born. The second he was placed in my arms, I completely fell in love with him. He was my baby, my only son. And from that day on, I never wanted to let him go. He had the most beautiful smile, one that could light up any room, and the bond we shared was something everyone could see. Those memories should have brought me comfort, but instead they are now mixed with pain, because I know what you put him through in his final months. The day he was taken from me was one of the worst days of my life. I had no choice in that decision. I tried to take some comfort in believing he would be safe, loved, and protected. And he was with his foster parents, Sandra and Paul. I trusted them. They in the system trusted you. That trust was completely and unforgivably broken. Preston was innocent. Davy said, There are no words that can truly describe the moment I was told my son had died. My world ended. Part of me died with him. But what makes it even more unbearable is knowing that his death was not an accident. It was something cruel. Something he done he did not deserve. Something that should never have been allowed to happen. Addressing Vale and McGowan Fazakli directly, she said, I will never forgive you for what you did to my son and what you stopped him from becoming and achieving in his life. Every single day I live with the unimaginable pain of wondering what he went through. Those thoughts do not leave me. They are with me when I wake up and they haunt me when I try to sleep. I'm going to end this episode with the unbearably moving but also uplifting remarks made by Sandra Cooper in her victim impact statement. She said Preston was going to be the last child we fostered. However, we could not retire after Preston died. We felt we had a duty to other children and could not sit back and enjoy ourselves, knowing that other children were being abused, mistreated, and could die. My husband, Paul and I have continued to foster children to protect them. We are doing this for Preston in his memory. Preston's death has changed my perspective on life. Things I once felt were important, I now feel are not. I realize that life is too short. Thanks for uh joining me for this very, very sad episode. And I hope I will you'll come back for the next episode of Total Crime.