Blackpool dad shows no emotion as he's jailed for brutal murder of 'helpless' two-year-old son

A man has been jailed for life for the murder of his two-year-old son in Blackpool.

Daniel Hardcastle killed Damion Russell in a "brutal and sustained assault" at their home in Central Drive, Blackpool in August 2023.

Hardcastle claimed the toddler had injured himself after falling and hitting his head on a coffee table.

But a pathologist found the extensive injuries suffered by the little boy were inconsistent with that claim.

The court heard that Hardcastle inflicted a severe head injury to Damion by either forcefully shaking him and then banging his head against a solid object or directly caused Damion’s head to collide with a solid object with such force, that his it caused significant injuries to his neck and eyes.

Damion was taken to hospital following the assault, but his injuries were unsurvivable and he died two days later.

31-year-old Hardcastle was found guilty of murder after a four-week trial at Preston Crown Court. The jury took just two hours to reach their unanimous verdict.

The trial heard that Damion had suffered horrendous injuries including a forceful adult human bite mark to his upper right thigh. He had also suffered fractured ribs, bruising across his whole body and a tear to the inside of his lip consistent with a drinking bottle being forced into his mouth.

The jury were told Hardcastle, who had sole care of his son, had started drinking more in the days and weeks before the assault.

He had isolated himself from his support network and the night immediately before inflicting the injuries which ultimately killed Damion, Hardcastle spent all night chatting to a woman he had met online.

Detective Superintendent Al Davies, Lancashire Police said: "First and foremost my thoughts today are with Damion’s loved ones. I hope this sentence gives them some sense that while nothing can bring Damion back that justice has been done for their loved one.

"Damion’s murder was an unspeakably vile and heinous act committed by the very man Damion should have been able to rely upon to love and protect him – his own father."

Hardcastle was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 22 years before he will be able to apply for parole.

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