Authorities failed my son, says grieving father

A FATHER whose ex-partner murdered their son during a custody battle has claimed the authorities ignored his concerns about her because he is a man.

Matthew Spriggs said those tasked with protecting Archie Spriggs favoured Lesley Speed, who smothered and strangled the sevenyear-old, because she was a woman.

Jurors at Birmingham Crown Court unanimously convicted Speed, of Rushbury, Shropshire, on Monday of the boy’s murder, and she was jailed for life with a minimum term of 18 years.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, Mr Spriggs said: “I did all I could to protect my son but was denied the support I needed to do so.…

“Despite laws on equality, the assumption is that a mother must be ‘good’ and a father ‘bad’.

“There were so many failures and missed opportunities to safeguard Archie but because the concerns were raised by myself – his father – they were dismissed.”