QUESTIONS are to be asked about how a two-year-old child came to be murdered by his mother’s partner.

Joseph Eke, 22, was found guilty of murdering Harry House last week following a trial at Winchester Crown Court.

The jury was told of a ‘pattern of abuse’ leading up to the toddler’s tragic death in May last year.
Eke is due to return to Winchester Crown Court on Monday, June 5 for sentencing.

But local authorities have launched a serious case review, to examine how Harry’s death came about, and what can be learned.

In a statement, Sarah Elliott, independent chair of the Dorset Safeguarding Children Board, said: “Now the trial has come to an end, the local agencies will carry out a serious case review to see what can be learnt from this tragic event to help safeguard children in the future. It would not be right to make any further comment until the review has been completed.”

She also moved to make the public aware of what can be done if they wish to raise concerns about a child’s safety, adding: “Anyone who has any concerns about the safety of a child in Dorset can contact the Dorset Safeguarding team on 01202 228866.”

Dorset Safeguarding is the multi-agency safeguarding hub bringing together partner agencies including social care, health and police across Bournemouth, Poole and Dorset, which acts as the single point of contact for reporting concerns about children’s safety.

During the trial, a number of witnesses told the jury that they had considered contacting authorities over Harry’s wellbeing, including the grandmother of Harry’s mother Lauren O’Neill.

A post-mortem examination found Harry died of blunt force trauma, by being punched or kicked in the stomach with such force that his pancreas split in two. Eke was also found guilty of grievous bodily harm, a charge relating to several broken ribs found during the post-mortem examination.

The court heard Miss O’Neill had gone to the shops to buy washing powder when Eke launched the fatal attack at the family home in Broadmayne. The pair later split up.

According to the NSPCC, serious case reviews are carried out when a child dies or is seriously injured and abuse or neglect are thought to be involved. While the purpose of the review is not to establish blame, it will look to discuss what happened and why, and outline any actions which could be taken in future to prevent death, serious injury or harm to children.