Father jailed for shaking infant son to death in Wales

Mathew Jones 'lost it' after being left alone with 15-week-old

Cody Rhys Williams-Jones was 15-weeks-old when he died in hospital (Gwent Police/PA)

A father who shook his baby son to death, has been jailed for nine years.

Cody Rhys Williams-Jones suffered fractured ribs and bleeds to the brain when Matthew Jones “lost it” after being left alone with the 15-week-old for one hour in December 2016.

The 26-year-old rugby player initially claimed he had accidentally dropped the baby.

But Newport Crown Court heard he became "frustrated" after he was unable to stop his boy from crying as he looked after him at their home in the Welsh village of Beaufort, Ebbw Vale.

Left to look after Cody while his partner Paula Williams visited her sister nearby, Jones began to repeatedly grab and shake Cody.

On her return home she found Jones holding Cody who had become “floppy”.

During a 999 call, he told an operator: "My baby's breathing, but he's lifeless. He is making noises, but he's breathing really slow."

Cody died in hospital the day after he was admitted, with scans showing he had suffered fractured ribs and multiple haemorrhages which were consistent with "shaking or impact" injuries.

Defending Jones, Richard Smith QC told the court his client had "cared immensely" for Cody before causing his death, and had since shown "genuine remorse".

He said: "It was a young man who had been working extremely hard to provide for his family. It is clear from exchanges between him and Miss Williams the pair were exhausted and significantly lacking in sleep but were trying their very best between them to get through it. In that extreme tiredness his self control deserted him."

A jury cleared Jones of murder, but found him guilty of manslaughter last week.

Judge Mr Justice Simon Picken said he did not mean to kill his child but did intend to cause him “some harm”.

He said Jones "essentially lost it" and allowed frustration at not being able to settle Cody when he was crying to "spin into anger".

The judge said: "The tragedy is not just that Cody died but that you as his father find yourself where you are as a consequence of his death. You will bare the burden no doubt for the rest of your life."

Following the sentencing, a spokesperson from children's charity NSPCC Wales tweeted: “Jones' role as a father was to keep his child safe from harm - instead he caused him horrific injuries with devastating consequences.”