Simon Vickers: Dad who claimed teen daughter’s death was ‘freak accident’ jailed for at least 15 years
A father has been sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 15 years for the murder of his 14-year-old daughter.
Simon Vickers was found guilty last month of killing his daughter Scarlett Vickers after stabbing her in the heart at their home in Darlington, County Durham, in July 2024.
The 50-year-old, who denied charges of manslaughter and murder, gave different accounts of what happened in the seconds before he plunged a kitchen knife 11cm into her chest.
As it happened: Simon Vickers sentencing
Simon Vickers. Pic: Durham Constabulary
Scarlett’s mother, Sarah Hall, was the only other person in the room, and stood by her partner, previously telling Teesside Crown Court that Vickers would never have harmed her.
During sentencing, Nicholas Lumley KC, defending, said: “Sarah Hall remains resolute in her belief that the father of her only child did not intend Scarlett any harm and his parents are of the same view.”
Ms Hall did not see the knife sticking in her daughter, Mr Justice Cotter said, because Vickers immediately removed it and put it on the side in the kitchen.
The jury, by a majority of 10-2, convicted him of murder after 13 hours of deliberations, rather than the less serious alternative of manslaughter, or to clear him.
Ms Hall and other family members in the public gallery looked stunned when the verdict was delivered.
Vickers himself did not react in the dock.
His sentence is the lowest minimum term the judge can pass down for a murder verdict.
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Killer dad told police: ‘We were mucking about’
During the trial, Vickers insisted his daughter’s death had been a “freak accident”.
He claimed he had swiped what he thought were tongs along a work surface, into her chest, and never realised it was a knife.
The judge described his version of events as “unconvincing and wholly implausible”.
Prosecutor Mark McKone KC had told jurors that Scarlett’s death was not an accident.
Home Office pathologist Dr Jennifer Bolton explained to the jury that how the knife went into Scarlett’s chest meant it must have been held in a hand, with force.
Smoked cannabis and drank wine
During the sentencing, Mr Justice Cotter said Vickers had “smoked cannabis and drank some wine” after work.
Ms Hall was cooking spaghetti bolognese when Scarlett came down from her bedroom, around 10.15pm, and they were said to have thrown grapes at each other for fun.
The mother said she then snipped at Vickers with the tongs and he complained it hurt – to which Scarlett called him “wimpy”.
Ms Hall claimed to turn away to serve the meal and then heard Scarlett say “ow”.
When she looked back, their only child was said to be pouring with blood.
In the 999 call, Ms Hall told the operator they had been “messing about” and her partner had thrown something at their daughter and “he didn’t realise”.
Vickers told one paramedic that his daughter had lunged towards him during a bout of play-fighting, the court was told.
“Exactly what then happens only you know,” the judge said, referring to the moment of the stabbing.
For the sentencing, the court heard the judge took into account the fact it was a momentary act, with no premeditation.
‘Loss of temper’
Mr Justice Cotter said: “Scarlett was just 14, a normal, healthy girl with a long life ahead of her when it was cut short by you.
“She died in the kitchen of her own home within minutes of having been stabbed.
“It went from an ordinary, happy family Friday night to tragedy within seconds due to what must have been your loss of temper.
“There is no other plausible explanation.”
He added: “You have never given a truthful explanation of what happened.”
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Speaking outside court, Detective Superintendent Craig Rudd said: “We may never know precisely what happened in that kitchen, but we can be certain there is no justification for what Simon Vickers did.
“Had he not picked up that knife Scarlett would still be alive today.”
UK
Teenager living in ‘continuous pain’ after surgeon Dr Yaser Jabbar carried out ‘inappropriate’ operations
A 15-year-old boy who was operated on twice by a now unlicensed Great Ormond Street surgeon is living with “continuous” pain.
Finias Sandu has been told by an independent review the procedures he underwent on both his legs were “unacceptable” and “inappropriate” for his age.
The teenager from Essex was born with a condition that causes curved bones in his legs.
Aged seven, a reconstructive procedure was carried out on Finias’s left leg, lengthening the limb by 3.5cm.
A few years later, the same operation was carried out on his right leg which involved wearing an invasive and heavy metal frame for months.
He has now been told by independent experts these procedures should not have taken place and concerns have been raised over a lack of imaging being taken prior to the operations.
Yaser Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence last year. Pic: LinkedIn
His doctor at London’s prestigious Great Ormond Street Hospital was former consultant orthopaedic surgeon Yaser Jabbar. Sky News has spoken to others he treated.
Mr Jabbar also did not arrange for updated scans or for relevant X-rays to be conducted ahead of the procedures.
The surgeries have been found to have caused Finias “harm” and left him in constant pain.
“The pain is there every day, every day I’m continuously in pain,” he told Sky News.
“It’s not something really sharp, although it does get to a certain point where it hurts quite a lot, but it’s always there. It just doesn’t leave, it’s a companion to me, just always there.”
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Finias’s surgery pictures
Care of over 700 patients being assessed
Mr Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence in January last year after working at Great Ormond Street between 2017 and 2022.
The care of his 700-plus patients is being assessed, with some facing corrective surgery, among them Finias.
“Trusting somebody is hard to do, knowing what they have done to me physically and emotionally, you know, it’s just too much to comprehend for me,” he said.
“It wasn’t something just physically, like my leg pain and everything else. It was emotionally, because I put my trust in that specific doctor. My parents and I don’t really understand the more scientific terms, we just went by what he said.”
Doctors refused to treat Finias because of his surgeries
Finias and his family relocated to their native Romania soon after the reconstructive frame was removed from his right leg in the summer of 2021.
The pain worsened and they sought advice from doctors in Romania, who refused to treat Finias because of the impact of his surgeries.
Dozens of families seeking legal claims
His mother Cornelia Sandu is “furious” and feels her trust in the hospital has been shattered. They are now among dozens of families seeking legal claims.
Cyrus Plaza from Hudgell Solicitors is representing the family. He said: “In cases where it has been identified that harm was caused, we want to see Great Ormond Street Hospital agreeing to pay interim payments of compensation for the children, so that if they need therapy or treatment now, they can access it.”
Finias is accessing therapy and mental health support as he prepares for corrective surgery later in the year.
A spokesperson for Great Ormond Street Hospital told Sky News: “We are deeply sorry to Finias and his family, and all the patients and families who have been impacted.
“We want every patient and family who comes to our hospital to feel safe and cared for. We will always discuss concerns families may have and, where they submit claims, we will work to ensure the legal process can be resolved as quickly as possible.”
Finias with his mother and sister
Service not ‘safe for patients’
Sky News has attempted to contact Mr Jabbar.
An external review into the wider orthopaedic department at the hospital began in September 2022.
It was commissioned after the Royal College of Surgeons warned the hospital’s lower limb reconstruction service was not “safe for patients or adequate to meet demand”.
The investigation is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Sir Keir Starmer has said closer ties with the EU will be good for the UK’s jobs, bills and borders ahead of a summit where he could announce a deal with the bloc.
The government is set to host EU leaders in London on Monday as part of its efforts to “reset” relations post-Brexit.
A deal granting the UK access to a major EU defence fund could be on the table, according to reports – but disagreements over a youth mobility scheme and fishing rights could prove to be a stumbling block.
The prime minister has appeared to signal a youth mobility deal could be possible, telling The Times that while freedom of movement is a “red line”, youth mobility does not come under this.
His comment comes after Kaja Kallas, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, said on Friday work on a defence deal was progressing but “we’re not there yet”.
Sir Keir met European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen later that day while at a summit in Albania.
Ursula von der Leyen and Sir Keir had a brief meeting earlier this week. Pic: PA
If agreed, the deal will be the third in two weeks, following trade agreements with India and the US.
Sir Keir said: “First India, then the United States – in the last two weeks alone that’s jobs saved, faster growth and wages rising.
“More money in the pockets of British working people, achieved through striking deals not striking poses.
“Tomorrow, we take another step forward, with yet more benefits for the United Kingdom as the result of a strengthened partnership with the European Union.”
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Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said she is “worried” about what the PM might have negotiated.
Ms Badenoch – who has promised to rip up the deal with the EU if it breaches her red lines on Brexit – said: “Labour should have used this review of our EU trade deal to secure new wins for Britain, such as an EU-wide agreement on Brits using e-gates on the continent.
“Instead, it sounds like we’re giving away our fishing quotas, becoming a rule-taker from Brussels once again and getting free movement by the back door. This isn’t a reset, it’s a surrender.”
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