Owner of Sheffield firm to be sentenced today after baby death

The boss of a Sheffield firm which designed and sold a cot in which a baby died is to be sentenced today.
Craig WilliamsCraig Williams
Craig Williams

Craig Williams, aged 37, who ran Sheffield-based Playtime Beds Ltd, sold a cot in which seven-month-old Oscar Abbey choked to death after getting his head trapped in a gap at the side of the cot during an incident in York in 2016.

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Williams, who had been charged with gross negligence manslaughter, pleaded guilty to failing to discharge an employer's general duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

Craig WilliamsCraig Williams
Craig Williams

He also admitted fraud.

Jurors were asked by the judge who presided over the trial to return a '˜not guilty' verdict for the manslaughter charge.

POLICE: Teenager injured in double stabbing in Sheffield remains in hospital During his trial it emerged that Williams, of Park View Road, Kimberworth, Rotherham, had been contacted by a customer a few months before the death, who was concerned that a bed she bought did not meet standards.

The customer was told by Williams that he had been in touch with Trading Standards and they are happy with his products.

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But the prosecutor revealed that Trading Standards officers had no record of any contact with Williams.

Williams is to be sentenced today alongside Joseph Bruce, 30, of Kimberworth Park Road, Rotherham, who also admitted fraud.

Bruce, who pleaded guilty before the trial started, had claimed to have been running a new bed company set up following Oscar's death, but it turned out to Williams' firm. Â