Former Territorial Army Corporal Convicted of Toddler's Manslaughter
A former Territorial Army corporal has been found guilty of battering his girlfriend's two-year-old son to death after sending a text message suggesting she should 'slap him back to sleep lol'. Scott O'Connor, 36, was convicted of manslaughter for the fatal assault on young Kol Page, while the child's mother, Zoe Coutts, 35, was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of her son.
Chilling Text Exchange Revealed in Court
During the trial at Southwark Crown Court, jurors were shown disturbing text messages between the couple from April 20, 2022. When Coutts messaged O'Connor to complain that Kol had been 'whinging', O'Connor replied with the callous suggestion: 'Jesus slap him back to sleep lol'. This exchange occurred just days before the fatal assault that would ultimately claim the toddler's life.
Catastrophic Injuries and Delayed Death
Kol Page suffered severe brain damage from the savage beating in April 2022 and tragically died from his injuries two years later in June 2024. Prosecuting barrister Ed Vickers KC told the court that the abuse 'culminated in a blow or blows to his abdomen' in the early morning of April 25, 2022. Medical examinations revealed three injuries to Kol's small bowel, which Vickers stated were caused by significant force from a punch, kick, or stamp.
The prosecutor described the horrific extent of the injuries, including a hole in the toddler's duodenum that led to a 'catastrophic loss of blood'. By the time Kol reached hospital, almost half of the blood in his system had drained out. Despite emergency surgery, the damage proved irreversible.
Pattern of Abuse and Deception
The court heard that O'Connor and Coutts had met on the dating app Bumble in autumn 2021 and began a relationship. O'Connor, who lived with his parents in Peckham, southeast London, visited Coutts at her Bromley home on at least 39 occasions between March 11 and April 25, 2022. Throughout March of that year, witnesses observed Kol with 'a number of bruises', and he was photographed with two black eyes on April 9.
When paramedics were called to the home on April 25, Coutts initially claimed Kol had fallen from a highchair. She later told police officers that her son had been fine in the morning, but became unconscious while she went to get a snack. Both defendants maintained this 'tissue of lies' throughout the investigation and trial, according to prosecutors.
Jury Deliberations and Verdicts
After 10 hours and 45 minutes of deliberations, the jury cleared both O'Connor and Coutts of murder charges. However, they convicted O'Connor of the alternative lesser charge of manslaughter, while Coutts was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child. Mr Justice Johnson ordered pre-sentence reports and adjourned sentencing until May 8.
Defendants' Conflicting Accounts
During the trial, both defendants blamed each other for Kol's injuries while denying any personal responsibility. Coutts claimed in her police interview that Kol was an active child who bruised easily due to Von Willebrand disease, an inherited condition affecting blood clotting. She insisted she was a 'good mother' and had no knowledge of how her son suffered such severe injuries.
O'Connor, who served as a corporal in the Territorial Army's Military Police, told detectives that Kol was 'very clumsy' and always hurting himself. During cross-examination, when shown harrowing photos of the bruised toddler, O'Connor agreed that 'this little boy has been abused' but denied any personal involvement.
Prosecution's Closing Arguments
In his closing speech, prosecutor Ed Vickers KC argued that the 'slap him back to sleep' text message, while possibly intended as flippant or a joke, reflected a serious pattern of behavior. 'By the night of 24 April, the behaviour, control and disciplining of Kol and using violence on Kol had become normalised, accepted and encouraged', he told jurors.
Vickers asserted that both defendants knew what happened that night and that 'with an assault of that kind, the other couldn't have slept through it'. He described their claims as 'sad and twisted' attempts to blame the toddler for his own injuries.
Previous Violent History Revealed
The court heard that O'Connor had a history of violence, including an incident in 2012 when he smashed a pint glass over his own father's head outside a pub. His father suffered a brain bleed, though charges were dropped after O'Connor claimed self-defense. O'Connor also had a history of cocaine misuse and had previously attempted to smash down a former partner's front door. Coutts claimed she had no knowledge of this violent past.
Judge's Summing Up
In his instructions to the jury, Mr Justice Johnson stated that 'there is no dispute Kol was unlawfully killed'. He explained that the prosecution did not need to prove who inflicted the fatal blows in a joint enterprise case. The judge noted that jurors might think whoever inflicted injuries on a small child 'must have intended to cause serious injury', but if they found no such intention, they could convict on the lesser charge of manslaughter.
The case has highlighted disturbing patterns of domestic violence and child abuse, with the chilling text message exchange serving as particularly damning evidence of the defendants' attitudes toward the vulnerable toddler in their care.
