Mother accused of murdering her baby

Katarzyna Gacek, mother of seven week old Tomas

A Clarksfield mother has been charged with the murder of her seven week old son Tomas.

Katarzyna Gacek (24), of Hillside Avenue, appeared at Oldham Magistrates Court this morning.

Darren Butterfield (35) and David Mokranowski (26) were also in court, on child neglect charges.

Tomas was taken to the Royal Oldham Hospital on January 26 with severe head injuries. He was transferred to the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital but died the following day.

Police began to investigate following a post mortem investigation.

Councillor Roger Hindle, who lives close to the Hillside Avenue home, said: “It came as a huge shock when I heard what had happened. I don’t know a great deal about what has gone on, but it is always a shock when something like this happens so close to home.

“It’s never nice to hear about cases such as these but when it happens on your own doorstep, it makes it even worse. My thoughts go out to the family.”

A neighbour added: “The cards and balloons that were up to celebrate the baby’s arrival have only just come down and now he is dead. It’s just awful.”

Det Insp Andy Cunliffe, from GMP’s Major Incident Team said: “This is a tragic case in which a very young baby has lost his life and we are determined to find out exactly what the circumstances were that led to him suffering such injuries.

“News of the death of such a little boy will no doubt come as a great shock to people. We we have a team of detectives dedicated to working on this investigation.”

Tomas’s family said: “We are all truly devastated and deeply shocked by the tragedy.”