Thomas Holford, 24, admits killing his little girl after Ramsgate incident

A man has admitted to killing his daughter after she suffered brain and bone injuries when she was just five weeks old.

Thomas Holford appeared at Canterbury Crown Court today where he pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of minor Everleigh Stroud.

However, the 24-year-old man denied the murder charge and is therefore still on trial.

Holford was first arrested after the baby was taken to QEQM hospital in Margate in April 2021.

He was suffering from injuries that included extensive skull bleeding and fractures to his spine, legs and ribs, said to have occurred at an address in Wallwood Road, Ramsgate.

Born on March 13, Everleigh was later transferred to St Thomas’ Hospital in London, where she remained in a vegetative state for more than a year until her death on May 27, 2022, at the age of 14 months.

The cause of death was later determined to be hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (deprivation of oxygen or blood to the brain) and cerebral hemorrhage.

A subsequent police investigation led to Holford, of Pedlars Close in Danbury, Essex, being charged earlier this year.

He attended the pre-trial review hearing before Judge Simon James via prison video link after being remanded in custody earlier.

However, Holford was told that the current hearing date of January 13 should be canceled and a new provisional start date of June 9 introduced.

But Judge James said there would be further investigation to see whether the hearings, which were expected to last three weeks, could be postponed until May 12.

Although Everleigh was injured in April 2021, the murder and manslaughter charges Holford pleaded to are dated May 27, 2022, the day he died.

The father was taken back into custody and another case management hearing will be held in the same court on February 28.