Murder of Arthur Labinjo-Hughes

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes
Born	(2014-01-04)4 January 2014[1]
Died	17 June 2020(2020-06-17) (aged 6) Birmingham, England
Cause of death	Brain injury due to blunt trauma
Known for	Abuse and murder victim
Parent(s)	Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow (mother) Thomas Hughes (father) Emma Tustin (stepmother)

On 16 June 2020, in Solihull, West Midlands, England, Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was severely beaten by his stepmother, Emma Tustin, causing what was described as "an unsurvivable brain injury." Arthur was taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital where he died the following day - 17 June. This followed a prolonged period during which Arthur suffered a campaign of violence, intimidation, torture and abuse from both Tustin and his father Thomas Hughes. Tustin and Hughes were respectively found guilty of murder and of manslaughter by Coventry Crown Court on 4 December 2021.^[2] The sentences (Tustin 29 years, Hughes 21 years) were then reviewed by the Attorney General, Ms Suella Braverman, who in turn referred them to the Court of Appeal as she believed they were "too low."^[3]

Background[]

Family upheaval[]

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes was the son of Olivia Labinjo-Halcrow and Thomas Hughes.^[4][5] The two separated shortly before his second birthday and though Arthur would live with his mother, both his parents shared custody of him until Labinjo-Halcrow stabbed her new abusive partner to death in an alcohol and drug fuelled rage in February 2019.^[6][4][5] This led to Hughes becoming Arthur's sole carer. The boy changed schools and moved along with his father into an annex behind his paternal grandparents' home. According to his grandmother he was initially 'nervous' but quickly became a 'happy, well-rounded child'.^[7]

In August 2019, Hughes met Emma Tustin on the dating website Plenty of Fish. Tustin did not mention initially that she had made a suicide attempt in 2013 and her two eldest children had gone to live with their fathers. Hughes introduced his son to his girlfriend early on in the relationship and she later claimed that they were 'friends straight away'. As Arthur returned to school after the summer holidays a teaching assistant stated that she had 'no concerns' about his condition. However, the child's uncle, with whom he had a close bond, soon began to notice that Hughes seemed to be becoming stricter with the boy, who appeared to be more fearful of getting into trouble. An official at school noted that the child became less happy as autumn progressed, and met with his father and grandmother about her concerns that the boy was developing an obsession with topics such as guns, death and the news, along with fears about being separated from or killed by his father. There was also an incident during a School Nativity play where Arthur became upset when a baby doll was removed from its crib.^[7]

COVID-19 pandemic[]

In early 2020, Hughes took his son to multiple medical appointments but the boy was not diagnosed with any mental health problems.^[7] Meanwhile the COVID-19 pandemic was spreading around the world which led to the closure of all schools in the UK and a national lockdown by the end of March 2020.^[8][9] On the day of the lockdown, Arthur and his father were staying in Tustin's home.^[5] Hughes' mother asked that he and Arthur come to her house but he refused,^[7] instead deciding to merge his household with Tustin's at her home in Solihull for the duration of the lockdown.^[10]

The following month, Hughes returned home for a few days after he was allegedly punched by Tustin's ex-boyfriend over an accusation he had hit the man's young son. Whilst he was at his grandparents' house, Arthur said that he had been pinned against the wall by Tustin and called a "horrible ugly brat" and his grandmother found several bruises on his back. When Hughes went back to his partner's house and refused his mother's request to leave the boy at her house for longer, she reported him to social services. A social worker went to visit Hughes, Tustin and the children the following day; she was told that Arthur's injuries had been sustained in his fight with Tustin's son and felt that he was 'very happy and very safe' and that there were no safeguarding issues in the household. Tustin later said she had coached the boys to lie about the incident and Hughes said that she warned him they would have their children taken away if he didn't go along with it as well. The incident was later reported to the police again by Arthur's uncle with no effect.^[7]

Abuse[]

In May 2020, Arthur was frequently forced to stand in the hallway for hours on end as a punishment for his supposed misbehaviour. Tustin reported these incidents to Hughes via text messages and audio clips of him crying. In these clips, the child could be heard crying for his grandmother and uncle, and at one point said "nobody loves me". The couple used insults such as "Satan", "Hitler", "Devilchild", "weasel" and various swear words to refer to the boy. Hughes frequently threatened violence against his son. Tustin said at one point to Hughes that "I want you but I don't want him". By the end of the month, he was moved out of Tustin's son and daughter's bedroom and made to sleep on the living room floor, where he was kept even when the other children slept elsewhere.^[7]

When Arthur's school reopened on 8 June he was not in attendance; Hughes was contacted by the school about the matter but provided various excuses for the child's absence. The couple installed a camera at home to monitor Arthur during his isolation. Arthur spent 35 hours of the three-day period between 12 and 14 June in the hallway, having been sent out. He was slapped by Tustin for entering the living room. The camera also recorded the couple and Tustin's children enjoying food and leisure activities which Arthur was not allowed to participate in.

On the morning of 15 June Tustin woke the boy up by ripping his bedding out from under him. She then took him with her to spend most of the day at her hairdresser's house. Throughout the six or so hours she was there, she forced the boy to stand by the door, and frequently shouted and swore at him. The child collapsed to the floor as they left the hairdresser's but was not helped by either Tustin or Hughes. Later that evening, Hughes belted Arthur on the legs. Hughes also told Tustin to "Just end him".^[7]

Day of the murder[]

On the morning of 16 June, Arthur appeared on CCTV footage to be weak, in visible pain, and struggling to lift his bedclothes. Hughes, Tustin and Arthur went back to the hairdresser's house where Arthur was constantly shouted at by the former two. The child was secretly given a drink of water by the hairdresser's partner, who later described him as "gaunt", "malnourished" and "a poor little kid who was broken". After getting home, Tustin claimed the boy hit his head against the bathroom door. She is believed to have carried out a fatal assault at 2:29 p.m.^[7] Twelve minutes later, after phoning Hughes, she called 999 and told medics that he "fell and banged his head and while on the floor banged his head another five times".^[11] Arthur was left with an unsurvivable brain injury. She took a photo of the dying boy, which she sent to Hughes.^[10] After he was taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital, it was decided that nothing could be done to save him and he died later that night. He was six years old at the time.^[7] At the time of his death, a medical review found that he was covered in 130 bruises, that he had been poisoned with salt, and that the extent of his injuries amounted to torture.^[5]

Aftermath[]

Coventry Combined Court Centre, where Tustin and Hughes were sentenced.

Emma Tustin was convicted of murdering Arthur Labinjo-Hughes at Coventry Crown Court in December 2021, and was given a life sentence with a minimum of 29 years.^[10] She is being held at HMP Peterborough.^[12] Thomas Hughes was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 21 years.^[13] The Attorney General's office said on 4 December that the sentences would be reviewed to "determine whether they were too low".^[14][15][16] Mister Justice Mark Wall, the presiding judge, described the case in his sentencing remarks as among the most "distressing and disturbing" cases that he has dealt with.^[17]

A local review was launched into the incident soon after the boy's death. Shortly after the conviction, the government announced that there would be a national inquiry into the case.^[18][19] The child was honoured at various football matches on 4 December.^[20]

The incident provoked discussion of the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the welfare of vulnerable children. Anne Longfield, the former children's commissioner for England, said that "...a lot of the services went on to the screens for children, and this child in particular, Arthur, wasn’t in school. And it's much easier for families who want to evade view to do that when they haven’t got someone in the room. So there’s a big lesson there, instantly about if there is a crisis, there are children who are going to slip from view and we have to make sure they have the protection, which does need face to face contact."^[21] Statistics for England suggested that there had been a 20% decrease in referrals to local authorities' children's departments but a 20% increase in reported cases of child harm and a 19% increase in child deaths.^[22]

See also[]

• Murder of Sylvia Likens
• Murder of Victoria Climbié
• Death of Baby P
• Murder of Star Hobson
• List of child abuse cases featuring long-term detention

References[]