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| Father admits child bath murders | Father admits child bath murders |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| A father has been sentenced to life and ordered to serve a minimum of 35 years after admitting murdering his two young children in their bath. | |
| Perry Samuel, 35, who has manic depression, smothered Aidan, three, and Caitlin, five, at their home in Bodelwyddan, Denbighshire. | |
| Samuel, an unemployed shop assistant appeared at Mold Crown Court on Friday where he admitted the killings. | Samuel, an unemployed shop assistant appeared at Mold Crown Court on Friday where he admitted the killings. |
| But the court heard Samuel is the only one who knows exactly what happened. | |
| Sentencing him, Judge John Rogers said: "You took them one after the other and put your hand over the mouth and the nose, disregarding their desperate struggle to get air into their lungs. You left your hands there until life itself had left their bodies." | |
| The judge said there was only one person who really knew what happened, and he was not saying. | |
| Samuel's defence counsel Stephen Riordan said that the truth of what happened was "locked in his (Samuel's) head" | |
| Samuel had told police the children had been having a bath and he remembered smoking a cigarette on the doorstep, hearing playful splashing upstairs. | |
| Mr Riordan said he told police that then "everything went wacko." | |
| "He can remember kneeling alongside the bath and falling against the wall, his jumper was wet and he took it off. The children were in the water," the barrister added. | |
| Mr Riordan explained that Samuel was took scared to call police straight away. Post mortem examinations suggested the time of death at some time between 8 and 9.30pm. | |
| After the deaths on 5 November 2006, a large pile of flowers and soft toys were left by well-wishers at the end-terrace house. | After the deaths on 5 November 2006, a large pile of flowers and soft toys were left by well-wishers at the end-terrace house. |
| Both children had been pupils at Ysgol y Faenol school in Bodelwyddan. | Both children had been pupils at Ysgol y Faenol school in Bodelwyddan. |
| Caitlin and Aidan Samuel were pronounced dead at hospital | |
| At their funeral, the vicar said the family did not want to remember the youngsters as "two tragic children snatched away", but as vibrant personalities. | At their funeral, the vicar said the family did not want to remember the youngsters as "two tragic children snatched away", but as vibrant personalities. |
| Caitlin was described as Princess Caitlin - a "proper little madam, with the biggest blue eyes in Wales". | Caitlin was described as Princess Caitlin - a "proper little madam, with the biggest blue eyes in Wales". |
| The congregation heard how she loved dressing up in pink and dancing to her favourite pop songs. | The congregation heard how she loved dressing up in pink and dancing to her favourite pop songs. |
| The family remembered Aiden as "a proper little man, with a booming deep voice, older than his years and a passion for driving faster than the wind on his bike". | The family remembered Aiden as "a proper little man, with a booming deep voice, older than his years and a passion for driving faster than the wind on his bike". |
| He loved his mum's cuddles and wanted to own a fast car like his uncle when he grew up. | He loved his mum's cuddles and wanted to own a fast car like his uncle when he grew up. |