41 Ribs Fractures n Internal Bleeding: Mother n Boyfriend Found Guilty Of Killing Son

Son, Kyrell Matthews was repeatedly attacked in the weeks before he collapsed and died at his home in Thornton Heath, south London, in October 2019, the Old Bailey heard.

According to report, mother and her boyfriend have been found guilty of killing her two-year-old son after she accidentally recorded “harrowing” audio clips of the pair abusing him.

Kyrell's mother, Phylesia Shirley, 24, who had previously worked in children's services at Croydon Council, was found guilty of manslaughter on Friday and her then-partner, Kemar Brown, 28, was found guilty of murder. 

The toddler had 41 rib fractures and internal bleeding from a 4cm cut to his liver at the time of his death, injuries which had been inflicted in at least five separate attacks over 28 days.

The court heard how the abuse was captured in secret recordings after Shirley hid her mobile phone in the home because she suspected Brown was being unfaithful. 

Instead, the phone captured distressing audio recordings which were recovered by the Metropolitan Police after officers seized the device and sifted through mountains of evidence, including 50,000 pictures. 

In the recordings, which were played to the jury, Kyrell could be heard being hit repeatedly, with Brown saying "shut up", causing the toddler to cry and scream. 

On one occasion, Brown inflicted several blows on the little boy before telling him: "You have to ruin the fun." 

Another recording captured Shirley striking her son and causing him to cry in distress.

Detective Chief Inspector Kate Kieran said “the fact that many of the assaults had been recorded made this an especially distressing case”.

“My team had to listen repeatedly to the sound of Kyrell being beaten and abused, I know how badly this has affected them. I want to pay tribute to their resilience and their determination to ensure those responsible for Kyrell’s death were convicted,” she added.

“We all choose to become part of the murder investigation team but I've never, ever uncovered evidence like this in one of these cases." 

Adjourning sentencing until March 25, Judge Mark Lucraft QC noted that the court had heard some "harrowing" recordings made by Shirley, saying she ought to feel "utterly ashamed".