Drug addict guilty of murdering 15-month-old baby after sustained campaign of ‘sadistic’ abuse

A former carer who used cocaine has been found guilty of killing his girlfriend’s infant son after a campaign of “sadistic” abuse that included cutting the child’s genitals and shaking the baby to death.

Drug addict Jake Drummond, 33, who is said to smoke 10 or 15 cannabis spliffs a day, shook and beat 15-month-old Jacob Lennon early on Aug. 27, 2019, giving him a face like a “panda,” the Old Bailey heard.

In the weeks before, Jacob suffered further injuries to his face, body and genitals, while the boy’s mother, Louise Lennon, 32, failed to stop it, jurors were told.

The ailing Drummond, who renamed the boy’s bedroom ‘the torture chamber’, now faces a life sentence.

Five days before the murder, Drummond sent her a sinister message saying he would put Jacob in the “torture room” in reference to his bedroom, jurors heard.

It followed a meme by Hollywood actor Ben Stiller in the movie Happy Gilmore with the quote, “Now you will go to sleep or I will put you to sleep.”

In another post, Lennon referred to Jacob as “a little madman” because of his bruises.

The pair had denied wrongdoing and blamed each other for Jacob’s horrific injuries.

After a trial at the Old Bailey, Drummond was found guilty of murder and intentionally wounding Jacob.

Lennon, 32, was found guilty of causing or permitting the death of a child who previously admitted to child abuse.

The court had heard how Social Services placed Jacob under a child protection plan in December 2018 under the category of emotional abuse.

But on August 20, 2019, Lennon lied to the social worker by saying she was on holiday in Hastings to skip a scheduled visit.

Meanwhile, Drummond had already embarked on “a campaign to deliberately assault and hurt Jacob,” prosecutor Sally O’Neill KC had said.

Drummond was frustrated that Jacob stayed in bed with him and Lennon instead of his bed, as the defendant struggled with insomnia due to his cocaine addiction.

On the day before the deadly attack, Drummond was also angry at having to go to a police station after an ex-girlfriend accused him of harassing her in a way that was ‘almost obsessive’.

Early the next day, Jacob was taken out of bed and shaken and beaten so hard that he fell unconscious, the jury was told.

Then Lennon made up a story for the emergency services that Jacob had fallen out of bed.

She also claimed he had tripped days earlier on his way from a supermarket back to their flat in South West London’s Roehampton.

Medici found that Jacob’s eyes were so swollen they couldn’t open and he “looked like a panda.”

He had more bruising on his forehead, temples and cheeks and his skull was described as soft and spongy.

Jacob, later found to have traces of cocaine in his body, was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead just over an hour later.

An autopsy revealed that he died of a fatal head injury, probably from hitting a blunt surface during the shaking.

Some of his injuries were inflicted days or weeks before the last attack.

Mrs. O’Neill told the jurors: “There were 20 marks of recent injuries on Jacob’s head, face and neck, 11 on his upper limbs, seven on his lower limbs and seven on his torso.”

The pathologist identified a “gaping” 3 cm cut on Jacob’s penis from “extreme pinching” or “biting” and a wound to his scrotum.

The prosecution said: “The injury to the scrotum was a penetrating injury resulting from penetration by a semi-sharp or sharp object such as a small-bladed weapon including a skewer or similar in previous days.”

The injuries to Jacob’s genitals were said to be ‘sadistic’ and were the subject of Drummond’s indictment.

A pathologist rejected a claim that the cut could have been caused by a Toy Story-themed ‘Mr Potato Head’ plastic knife.

Drummond denied injuring Jacob and Lennon said she was “coerced and threatened” by her boyfriend not to seek help for her son.

The court heard that Drummond was given a juvenile detention in 2005 for holding a knife to his mother’s throat and was convicted in 2008 of assaulting another ex-girlfriend by pushing her against a wall.

The other ex-partner he was warned against for harassment also claimed he had previously grabbed her around the neck until she nearly passed out, jurors were told

Earlier in the trial, Lennon had sobbed when prosecutor Sally O’Neill showed her photographs she had taken of her son showing his injuries getting worse, including severe bruising on his head, a cut on his lip and the tuft of hair that was removed by hair removal cream.

She said she saw some injuries to Jacob’s genitals, but not the worst injury, a cut.

Ms O’Neill said she must have seen all the injuries when she was regularly changing Jacob’s nappy.

“It’s a horrible, nasty injury to your 16-month-old baby and you knew the injury was caused by the man you were dating.

“How could that injury have happened in your flat without you knowing?” asked Mrs. O’Neill.

Lennon said she was asleep.

“But you told us you’re a light sleeper. I’m sure you’ll agree that a mother is tuned in to her baby’s cries and hears them more than other people.

“You agreed it must have been a terribly painful injury.

“Jacob would have screamed his head off when that injury was inflicted on him,” said Ms O’Neill.

Lennon said Drummond pinned and assaulted her as their relationship deteriorated, and that she would go on her phone late at night and block her ex-boyfriends’ numbers.

Ms O’Neill previously told jurors: ‘Jake Drummond had embarked on a campaign between July and the end of August to deliberately attack and hurt Jacob.

“The injuries he caused were obvious and noticeable.

Lucy Lennon tried to explain them away by making up accidental causes for them, when it must have been clear to her that it was Jake Drummond who caused them.

His eyes were so swollen they couldn’t open them. Under his eyes were bruises so dark he looked like a panda.

“The injury to the scrotum was a penetrating injury resulting from penetration by a semi-sharp or sharp object such as a small bladed weapon including a skewer or similar in previous days.

“The injury to Jacob’s penis and scrotum in particular caused by a sharp object was sadistic in its brutality and must have caused Jacob great pain.

Louise Lennon was more concerned with maintaining her relationship with Jake Drummond than protecting her young son from him, despite it becoming clear to her that Jake disliked Jacob and Jacob’s ever-increasing and unexplained injuries. ‘

The jury deliberated for more than two days to find the couple guilty of the charges against them.

Drummond denied, but was convicted of murder and intentional wounding.

Lennon denied but was convicted of causing or permitting the death of a child.

She admitted child abuse.

Mr Justice Sweeting adjourned sentencing until April 24 to prepare reports.

The senior judge thanked the jury and said, “It’s been a tough case, I know, with a lot of disturbing evidence for you to hear.”