Poppi Worthington inquest: Aunt would have trusted father accused of sex assault on toddler with her own children, court hears

Paul Worthington in hiding 'after receiving death threats'

The sister of Paul Worthington, who is accused of sexually assaulting his toddler daughter Poppi Worthington before her death, has told a court she trusted him with her own children.

Tracy Worthington gave evidence at the second inquest into the death of Poppi, who collapsed suddenly at her home in Barrow-in-Furnesson, Cumbria, on 12 December 2012.

Mr Worthington has been in hiding since January 2016, when a family court judge made public his conclusion that he probably sexually assaulted his 13-month-old daughter before her collapse.

He said Poppi's "significant bleeding" within 15 minutes of the 999 call could only be sensibly explained as the result of penetrative trauma.

Mr Worthington, who vigorously denies any wrongdoing, was due appear in the witness seat at County Hall, Kendal, on Wednesday.

Ahead of his evidence, his sister told the hearing she rushed to the family house after Poppi's mother called her.

She said: "She was very distressed and crying. I thought that she said Paul was not breathing and had gone in the ambulance. Then I understood that Poppi had gone in the ambulance with Paul and she was not breathing."

The ambulance was just leaving as she arrived, she said, and in the living room she saw Poppi's mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, Poppi's siblings and two police officers.

Ms Worthington said she then stayed at the house as Poppi's mother was taken to the hospital by relatives.

She said she noticed a nappy next to her as she sat on a settee and it had a "rancid smell".

"It was full of diarrhoea," she said. "Really full.

"It was not open, open. It was starting to seep from the outside."

She said she placed it in a carrier bag which she tied and asked the male officer: "Is it OK to put it in the bin because it stinks?"

Ms Worthington told the hearing: "He said it was OK. He was watching me all the time I was doing it."

She added that a female officer also told her it was OK to dispose of the nappy as she went out of the front door to put the nappy in an outside wheely bin.

Mrs Worthington confirmed that in a previous statement about the incident she had spoken about her brother and had trusted him with her own children who he had had care of at times.

In his fact-finding judgment, Lord Justice Peter Jackson criticised police for effectively not conducting any "real" investigation into Poppi's death for nine months.

He said among basic omissions was that the scene at the family home was not secured after Poppi was taken to hospital, with the youngster's last nappy – thought to be the one Ms Worthington disposed of – being lost.

The inquest earlier heard a harrowing 999 call from Poppi's mother, who relayed instructions from the emergency call handler to Mr Worthington, who performed CPR on the child.

She told the operator: "My baby's not breathing, she gone blue."

The second inquest was ordered after the controversial first hearing – held by a different coroner – was shrouded in secrecy and lasted just seven minutes.

Poppi was listed as "a child aged 13 months" at the first inquest in 2014 as now retired coroner Ian Smith decided he was satisfied to rely on the findings of the then private family court fact-finding judgment and declared her death unexplained.

The hearing continues.

Additional reporting by Press Association