Bedfordshire pair jailed after "monstrous" murder of 2-year-old girl

A 24-year-old man has been jailed for life after being found guilty of murdering a two-year-old girl found dead in a bathroom – and her mum who “stood close by and did nothing to intervene” has also been put behind bars.

Bedfordshire couple Scott Jeff and Chelsea Gleason-Mitchell – also aged 24 – were sentenced at Ipswich Crown Court today (Friday) for their roles in the death of Isabella Jonas-Wheildon.

Jeff was sentenced to life imprisonment and will serve a minimum of 26 years, while Gleason-Mitchell was sentenced to 10 years.

Jeff had been found guilty of the toddler’s murder on November 22 following a seven-week trial.

Gleason-Mitchell had been on trial alongside Jeff and was found not guilty of murder, with the judge directing the jury that it was only possible for one of them to be convicted of this offence.

She had previously pleaded guilty to allowing the death of a child – a homicide offence – and two offences of cruelty to a child.

Jeff had also denied two counts of cruelty to a child but was found guilty of these offences in addition to the murder conviction.

Both Jeff and Gleason-Mitchell were sentenced to terms of six months and three months imprisonment respectively for the two child cruelty offences and these will be served concurrently.

During the trial the court heard chilling details of the abuse little Isabella suffered before her body was found on June 30, 2023, in a pushchair at the temporary accommodation in Ipswich where Jeff and Gleason-Mitchell had been staying.

Experts said Isabella’s cause of death was “bone marrow embolism and skeletal trauma” – with a world-leading expert saying that her injuries, which were likened to what would have been sustained in a high-speed crash, were the worst he had seen in his 40-year career.

She had sustained fractures to both of her wrists and her pelvis – injuries which were consistent with having been kicked or stamped on – and also had extensive bruising all over her body. Bone marrow from her pelvic injuries entered her bloodstream and lungs.

The court was told how the pair had continued to take her body out in a pushchair for three days after she died, and were spotted just 30 minutes after her death “laughing and joking”. It also heard how traces of cocaine and cannabis were found in her system.

The murder came to light after Gleason-Mitchell told a friend ‘something bad’ had happened and eventually admitted Isabella ‘had died’. The friend immediately contacted Bedfordshire Police and the manhunt began.

The pair fled but were tracked down in Bury St Edmunds on July 1 and arrested. Google searches on Jeff’s phone that day included: “Dead in Ipswitch (sic)”; taxis in Ipswich”; and “trains from Ipswich”.

Jeff was captured on CCTV with his arm in a makeshift sling on the day Isabella was murdered. Gleason-Mitchell told the court he had hurt himself when violently hitting Isabella during the fatal attack.

The day after the murder, Jeff’s phone was used to search Google for: “Flight to Scotland price”; “train to Amsterdam”; “Do u need a passport to Amsterdam”.

Detectives believed this was the beginning a plan to hide their crime and flee the country. And giving evidence during cross-examination Gleason-Mitchell told the court that Jeff had asked her to buy a shovel.

Gleason-Mitchell also told the court she had witnessed Jeff assault Isabella and the attacks escalated when he became frustrated by accidents she had during potty training.

She admitted that she failed to intervene or take any action to remove Isabella from the situation and that she put her relationship with Jeff ahead of protecting her daughter.

Jeff denied ever assaulting Isabella and said he did not know how she had got her injuries. He claimed there were occasions that he had gone out and when he came back she had hurt herself and that Gleason-Mitchell told him she had fallen over.

When passing sentence, the Judge described Jeff’s attacks on Isabella as “monstrous”, while he called Gleason-Mitchell “weak and spineless” for doing nothing to stop him.

The court commended the work of the police investigation team and the family liaison officers.

Detective Chief Inspector Craig Powell, the Senior Investigating Officer, said: “As I said following the convictions, the murder of any child is the worst crime imaginable. No sentence will ever be long enough, but the court has imposed the most severe penalties that it has deemed appropriate.

“Throughout this entire investigation we have been fully focused on achieving justice for Isabella and her family, and that has now been delivered. We know nothing will ever bring her back, but we have ensured that the person responsible for her murder has been sentenced to a significant prison term.

“I once again want to pay tribute to the family who have had to endure the unimaginable pain caused by Isabella’s death, alongside the trauma of all the details that have been divulged during the trial. A trial which could have been avoided had Scott Jeff admitted his guilt.

“The family have remained dignified throughout all of this and have provided me and my team with their full cooperation, trust and support, for which I am very grateful.

“None of us involved in this case will ever forget Isabella and as I said previously, she has truly touched our hearts, along with those of so many others who she met during her short life.”