An inquest has heard how Veronique John was allowed to return to her Stoke home by police after admitting she had attacked her husband — only to go on to murder her two children
A mother who was permitted to return home by police after admitting to assaulting her husband subsequently murdered their two children just hours later, an inquest has heard.
Veronique John was given an indefinite hospital order last year for the murder of her daughter Elizabeth, seven, and son Ethan, 11, at their Stoke residence in June 2023. An inquest into the tragic deaths of the young siblings is underway at Stoke Civic Centre this week.
On Tuesday, coroner Emma Serrano began hearing testimony from a Staffordshire Police officer who had been to the family’s house the day before the children were killed. The coroner was also briefed on a review conducted that examined the force’s handling of the harrowing situation.
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The investigation concluded that the service provided by Staffordshire Police was “inadequate”, according to information shared with the inquest.
The weekend of the incident, the children’s father, Nathan John, had expressed worries that his wife might “use the children against him”, reports the Manchester Evening News.
The initial call to the police was made by Mrs John herself on Friday, July 9, prompting officers to visit their Flax Street home. Upon arrival, PC Megan Maddox found Mr John absent from the property, with the two children upstairs, leading her to classify the situation as “medium risk”.
PC John Harrison, who reviewed the case, shared details with the inquest: “In respect of the John family, this was their first interaction with Staffordshire Police. I believe (the children) overheard verbal arguing; both children were in bed upstairs and didn’t see any violence.”
Following a 999 call from Mr John claiming he had been struck by his wife, police officers met him at his workplace the following day on June 10. They observed a swollen forearm and a lump on his forehead.
Mr John alleged that his wife had attacked him with a piece of wood and threatened to stab him while he slept. Mrs John was subsequently arrested at her residence later that day and during questioning, she confessed to slapping her husband but refuted any accusations of making threats to kill.
Sergeant Steven Marriott, in charge of admissions at the northern area custody facility that evening, noted that Mrs John disclosed she was on medication for depression.
Although the mental health team had finished for the day as they work until 8pm, a healthcare professional was on hand to evaluate Mrs John if deemed necessary.
Sergeant Marriott informed the inquest: “There was nothing that made me feel she needed to see a healthcare professional at the time. I did not believe there was any reason to delay the interview with Mrs John.”
PC Maddox recounted how Mrs John “seemed quite apologetic” regarding the assault, leading to the suggestion of handling the incident with a community resolution notice since it was her first police encounter.
After the events, Mrs John was allowed to return home in the early hours of Sunday, July 11. Mr John stayed elsewhere, leaving his wife at home with their children.
However, by that afternoon, Mr John had alerted the police that he had been stabbed.
PC Harrison said: “Officers initially went to the home address and that’s where officers found both of the children. Veronique John contacted police, stating she was at her home and had killed the children.”
Despite paramedics rushing to the scene, they were unable to save the children, who were declared deceased shortly after 2.30pm.
The inquest revealed that had a domestic violence protection notice been issued instead of the community resolution notice, Mrs John would have been barred from returning to her home for 48 hours.
During the inquest, PC Maddox said: “While I was speaking to Mr John on the Saturday evening I asked if the children were safe at home with mum and he said yes; I believed there was no physical threat to the children.
“He had somewhere else to go and we didn’t believe that she did. She was the main carer for the children while he worked and I thought the physical risk was focussed on Mr John, not the children.”
PC Harrison stated: “This was a highly unusual outcome. Officers will see a high number of domestic abuse cases, but case like these are extremely rare.”
The inquest continues.