Designer of cot behind tragedy jailed

The designer of a cot in which a seven-month-old baby “choked to death” has been jailed by a judge who told him that he should “bear the brunt” of the responsibility for the rest of his life.

Craig Williams, 37, wiped away a tear at Leeds Crown Court after hearing how the parents of Oscar Abbey found his lifeless body hanging out of the cot he had sold them.

A judge said that the defendant, of Park View Road, Kimberworth, Rotherham, South Yorkshire, had shown a “flagrant disregard” for the public by continuing to sell beds made with the same design even after the boy’s death.

“A significant responsibility for Oscar’s death”

Williams had been on trial for manslaughter by gross negligence, but a jury was directed to return a not-guilty verdict after he admitted failing to discharge an employer’s general duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act and a count of fraud.

Jailing Williams yesterday for three years and four months, Judge Martin Spencer said: “You may not be guilty of manslaughter, but I find that you bear a significant responsibility for Oscar’s death.

“You should bear the brunt of that responsibility for the rest of your life.”

Craig Williams