'No-one loves me': Boy's harrowing cries hours before murder
WARNING - DISTRESSING DETAILS: A six-year-old boy cried out for hours before he was allegedly murdered by his father and step-mother.
Arthur Labinjo-Hughes died from a head injury last year and his father Thomas Hughes and his partner Emma Tustin were charged in relation to his death.
He was found unresponsive in his family home and later died on June 17 in hospital.
Hughes and Tustin are currently on trial. According to The Mirror, the court heard heartbreaking voice messages of Arthur, crying out.
"No-one loves me,” the six-year-old says in one of the messages.
“No-one is going to feed me,” he says in another.
In CCTV taken the day before Arthur died, he can be seen in the family's living room struggling to stand and carry his blanket. He appears to be crying.
According to The Independent, Arthur suffered a fatal brain injury after he was subject to cruelty, or as it was phrased in court, the “medical definition of child torture”.
He was allegedly poisoned with salt and deprived of food. The six-year-old was forced to stand for up to 14 hours a day and sleep on the living room floor for days on end.
Arthur’s father and step-mother deny killing him and the counts of child cruelty.
“Arthur was a defenceless child entirely dependent on them for his well-being,” Prosecutor Jonas Hankin previously told the court, The Independent reported.
“Arthur became a target for derision, abuse and systematic cruelty designed to cause him significant physical and mental suffering for reasons which are unfathomable.”
Father's aggressive texts revealed in court
Hughes had sent Tustin several disturbing text messages before Arthur’s death.
“On that day, 15 June, you signalled your intentions to cause Arthur serious harm in messages,” Mr Hankin QC said.
"You messaged Emma to 'dig Arthur's grave', 'I'll take his neck off', to 'gag him with rope and a sock in his mouth', 'kid is getting it when I get back'."
Hughes told the court on Monday Tustin would “mentally abuse” Arthur to ensure he complied with a “disciplinary routine” and he insisted he did not want to “intentionally” hurt his son.
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