The mother of the murdered child Star Hobson has told relatives that she believes her lover killed her daughter with jealous rage because she told him he was leaving her.
Frankie Smith was jailed for causing or allowing Star’s death, and her lover, Savannah Brockhill, was found guilty of murder.
The 16-month-old boy suffered catastrophic injuries in September 2020.
In an interview with Sky News before a review of social services failures, two relatives of Star have described the toxic relationship that led to his death.
David Fawcett, Star’s great-grandfather, told Sky News, “That’s the horrible thing I’ve learned lately.”
Star’s mother “told Savannah that was all. I’m done,” she said.
“And that was the day Star died … And Frankie even said, ‘He did it because he left him. And it was the only way I could be attacked. “
Alicia Szepler, Smith’s sister, added that this is a case of “if I can’t have you, you can’t have her.”
Ms Szepler said: “She knew what she was doing. It wasn’t just a matter of the moment.”
“We weren’t allowed to see her”
The family does not forgive Smith for what happened.
In court it emerged that she was a cruel and negligent mother, but also that Brockhill controlled her.
Image: Alicia Szepler says Brockhill “knew what she was doing” before Star’s death
The jury ruled that Brockhill administered the fatal beatings, but Smith at least contributed by being complicit in months of abuse.
Fawcett sees Brockhill as an evil influence that isolated Smith and Star.
He said, “She couldn’t stand Frankie talking to people, and she didn’t like the fact that Star was happy with us. She said, ‘She’s our star, our son.’
Ms Szepler said: “We did not allow ourselves to see her on her birthday. We would have had her only birthday with her, and we did not allow ourselves to see her.”
Read more: “We call him the monster” – The family no longer says the name of the boy’s killer
The family celebrated Estrella’s birthday this year.
On May 14, two bouncy castles were placed in Roberts Park, near Bradford. Balloons were released and songs were sung under a perfect blue sky.
The gathering looked like any family celebrating in the sun, but the picture on the table, recognizable by the news, told a different story.
They sang a happy birthday to a boy who could not be there.
Mr. Fawcett played his guitar as he had done before during his brief stint with Star, and she shook her head in delight.
Image: David Fawcett said social services were “phobic”
For a lovely few weeks in early 2020, Mr. Fawcett was the little girl’s guardian along with her great-grandmother Anita.
As they try to focus on the joy the little boy brought, they can’t escape the pain.
“I wake up in the morning, the first thing I think of is Star,” Fawcett said.
“I don’t think we’ll ever get over it. Anita cries every day. She tells me, ‘I won’t talk until they get back to the Star.'”
“There are no words to say how much our whole family has been ruined,” Ms. Szepler said.
“It’s not like we just lost the Star. We’ve lost Frankie too, and our family is just a mess.”
Fawcett and Szepler were among the five people who had reported the couple to social services after seeing photos of Star with bruises.
Image: Savannah Brockhill, left, and Frankie Smith were jailed for Star’s death. Images: West Yorkshire Police
Fawcett said: “When the social workers went home, even though it was Frankie’s baby. [Brockhill] He immediately grabbed the Star, brought it to its knees, and it seemed as if [as if to say] “I have total control, there is nothing wrong with this child” and social services have obviously been rejected.
“We couldn’t understand why they didn’t take Frankie and Star to the kitchen and talk to them alone.”
“Social services should have thought‘ how come they stop seeing a wider family, ’” Ms Szepler added.
“I know social workers have a lot of cases, and it’s hard, but the social workers I dealt with with Star, I didn’t think it really bothered them.”
Bradford council says it is awaiting review before responding.
Mr Fawcett and Mrs Szepler are being persecuted for what they could have done most, but that is now also a matter for children’s social care.