The stepmum exposed as a young girl's killer almost 50 years on

Here is the latest breaking news from around the world: The stepmum exposed as a young girl's killer almost 50 years on1 hour ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleSonja JessupBBC London home affairs correspondent BBCJanice Nix led a life of crime in the 1970s and '80s and spent more than 17 years in prison - this image is from an earlier article about her memoirOne Sunday in September 2022, a man walked into Croydon police station and told officers he needed to reveal a terrible secret he'd carried for almost half a century. Desmond Bernard described how, in 1978, his stepmother had killed his five-year-old sister Andrea by scalding her in a hot bath at their home in Thornton Heath, south London. Her death had always been treated as an accident, but Bernard, who had been just eight at the time, told officers that Janice Nix had ordered him to lie about what really happened.

He said the siblings had lived in terror of punishments doled out by Nix, including being beaten and forced to eat cat food. Earlier, a jury at Isleworth Crown Court found Nix, 67, guilty of Andrea's manslaughter and of child cruelty towards Bernard. Desmond BernardFive year old Andrea Bernard's death in 1978 was recorded as an accident until her brother came forward to police Warning: distressing details are included in this articlePolice who investigated the case are clear Nix would never have been brought to justice had it not been for Bernard's courage in coming forward decades later.

The Details

Det Con Fran Homer, from the Metropolitan Police's cold case team, said it had been "heartbreaking" to hear how he had felt guilt over what happened, despite not being in any way to blame. She believes his decision to walk into the police station came from a place of wanting to be "the voice of Andrea she didn't have" and feeling he was unable to carry the burden of such a secret any longer. But proving Nix's guilt would be challenging in a case where very few records survived.

PA MediaNix was brought to justice after her stepson reported her to the police in 2022Homer said that Nix had not appeared to be anxious when she arrived at the station for an initial police interview in November 2022. Initially, she replied "no comment" to each question. "I felt like she knew what she was doing," said Homer.

"As the adult's word against a child's, she thought she'd be OK. " Nix was no stranger to being in trouble with the law. She'd previously written a memoir about her past as a notorious London drug dealer known as Mama J.

She spoke to the about it in 2021, describing how she eventually turned away from a life of crime to become a probation officer. When Nix was first released from prison, about 20 years ago, she said she suffered depression when her criminal record caused her problems keeping a job. In December 2016, Nix was invited to speak at a government select committee as a witness, describing the challenges she faced as an ex-offender in the workplace.

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.