Coroner 'would have contacted police' if told of Letby suspicions, inquiry hears

The coroner who examined a number of deaths of babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital was never told of any suspicions that a member of staff may have been responsible, a public inquiry has heard.

The Thirlwall Inquiry is examining the circumstances surrounding Lucy Letby's crimes, namely the murder of seven infants and attempting to murder of others.

On Wednesday 4 December, the inquiry heard evidence from Alan Moore, the then-assistant coroner for Cheshire.

He said that while he was made aware that a medical review was ongoing into an increase in deaths on the neonatal unit in 2015 and 2016, he was not told it had been commissioned after staff had raised concerns that a nurse may be responsible.

Counsel to the inquiry Nicholas de la Poer KC said: “We know that a driving factor behind the RCPCH review was the fact that the consultants raised concerns at a number of meetings that they had suspicions that a nurse may be responsible for some or all of the deaths. Was that information communicated to you by Mr Cross?”

Mr Moore said: “No.”

Mr de la Poer said: “If you had been told that, what – if anything – would have been your reaction?”

Mr Moore said: “I would have explored exactly what the concerns were that Mr Cross or the trust had and if necessary would have spoken to the police.”

He said those concerns were not mentioned either to himself or then-senior coroner for Cheshire Nicholas Rheinberg in February 2017 when they met Mr Cross and the hospital’s medical director Ian Harvey.

Mr Moore said: “There was no mention whatsoever of anything of that kind.

“If it had been, the outcome of this meeting would have been very different I assure you. Mr Rheinberg is a very experienced, diligent and thorough coroner and I have no doubt he would have contacted the police probably before Mr Harvey and Mr Cross had left the room.”

Mr Moore, who replaced Mr Rheinberg as senior coroner in March 2017 and retired himself in June 2022, added: “The provision of timely, accurate and truthful information is fundamental to the coronial process.

“If the Countess of Chester had become aware of any information which had not already been disclosed to the coroner’s office that would impact upon a death, the Countess of Chester would have been required to disclose that information immediately.

“The Countess of Chester would have been expected to notify the police immediately if it had any reason to suspect that a person or persons may have been criminally responsible for causing a death.

“The coronial process is a judicial process. It demands complete candour from healthcare professionals, clinicians, nurses and from hospital staff and also from trust management, and a failure to disclose to the coroner any information which may have a material bearing on a coronial case, whether it’s been through the coronial process already or is pending, is to mislead the coroner and to mislead the court.”

Letby, 34, from Hereford, is serving 15 whole-life orders after she was convicted at Manchester Crown Court of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others, with two attempts on one of her victims, between June 2015 and June 2016.

The inquiry, sitting at Liverpool Town Hall, is expected to sit until early 2025, with findings published by late autumn of that year.

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