UPDATE Friday 26th March 2021: Sean Sadler has been jailed for life – to serve a minimum of 20 years – at Birmingham Crown Court today.
Read the judge’s comments on Birmingham Live.
A grieving grandmother has spoken of the loss of her grand-daughter as a local man was today (Wednesday 24th March) found guilty of the murder of the Northfield toddler.
While in the care of Sean Sadler, 21 month old Lilly Hanrahan was rushed to hospital from her home in The Green, in Northfield, with a catastrophic head injury and six broken ribs in November 2017.
Despite the best efforts of surgeons, Lilly’s injuries were unsurvivable and her life support was withdrawn three days later.
Sadler of Coriander Close was today found guilty of murder and wounding at Birmingham Crown Court. He will be sentenced on Friday (26th March).
‘Loved to dance’
Lilly’s grieving grandmother Lesley Hanrahan said: “She did love to dance! She would hear music and her arm would shoot up in the air.
“I’ve got another grandchild and when you look at her, you’d think it was Lilly, and it kills me.”
Lesley looked after her granddaughter for four months after she was born in February 2016 as her daughter was unable to care for the newborn herself, and until more suitable care could be found for her. Lilly was placed with a legal guardian and continued to thrive, still seeing her grandmother often.
In the spring of 2017, Lilly’s guardian began a relationship with Sean Sadler and he became a regular visitor to their home, often staying overnight. It wasn’t long before the guardian began to notice bruises on Lilly and photographed them from September 2017, even alerting Lilly’s nursery so they could monitor her.
On the afternoon of Sunday 19 November 2017 Lilly was left in Sadler’s care while the guardian went out. Sadler alleges that Lilly went to sleep on the settee, but sometime later she would not wake when he tried to rouse her, so he called an ambulance.
Extensive injuries over several weeks
At hospital the extent of Lilly’s injuries became apparent when bruising was found on her scalp under her hair, and following her death extensive post mortem examinations revealed the head injury which killed her and six broken ribs. Experts believed these were non-accidental and the likely cause was that Lilly had been violently shaken and thrown against a soft surface, such as the armrest of a settee.
Sadly this was not the only abuse Lilly had suffered when it emerged that she had three fractured vertebrae in her spine and bleeding in her lungs which had happened some two to three weeks previously.
During Sadler’s trial at Birmingham Crown Court, the jury heard from expert witnesses who testified that they found multiple sites of recent and healing injuries on Lilly’s small body. They found a total of 40 injuries, including 20 to her head and neck and the rest to her body and limbs. They were considered to be consistent with gripping with excessive force or being slapped.
‘Shocking and incomprehensible’
Detective Sergeant Al Darby, from the force’s homicide unit, said: “The death of a child is the most tragic of events and in these circumstances is shocking and incomprehensible.
“It has taken three years to bring Sadler to justice and I thank the medical experts for their diligence and tenacity in examining the evidence and putting it before the jury.
“I hope today’s verdict brings some solace to Lilly’s family – my thoughts are with them.”