Evil mum and partner called 10-month old baby the 'devil' before he was murdered in most horrific way

An evil stepfather has been convicted of murdering a 10-month-old boy who was found dead in his cot with horrific injuries.

Jacob Crouch was found with 39 rib fractures, 19 visible bruises and several internal injuries after being subjected to a "vicious assault".

Craig Crouch, 39, was convicted of murder and three counts of child cruelty after a jury deliberated for four days following a seven-week trial at Derby Crown Court.

Try MEN Premium for FREE by clicking here for no ads, fun puzzles and brilliant new features

Jacob’s mother Gemma Barton, 33, was cleared of murder, an alternative charge of manslaughter, and two counts of child cruelty, but was found guilty of causing or allowing the death of a child and a third count of child cruelty, the PA news agency reports.

Opening the case in June, prosecutor Mary Prior KC said: “Neither sought medical help for Jacob at any stage for the pain and suffering caused when his bones were broken or in the few days that followed.”

She added: “Neither got Jacob out of what must have been a life with episodes of significant pain and suffering. Jacob was not given the care that as a baby he needed and deserved.”

Mrs Prior said that Jacob was found dead at his home near Swadlincote, Derbyshire, on the morning of December 30, 2020, following a “vicious assault” which was the culmination of regular abuse within a “culture of cruelty”.

Dr Sarah Dixon, a consultant paediatrician, told the court Jacob suffered “repeated physical abuse” in the weeks, days and hours prior to his death and that it was “not remotely” possible that the injuries could have been self-inflicted.

They included a traumatic bowel perforation which led to a fatal infection, which forensic pathologist Dr Michael