Mother accused of murdering her two sons told their father they were 'sleeping' before he discovered them dead in their beds, court hears

A father who was due to look after his two sons for the weekend found them lying dead on their bunk beds after they were killed by their mother, a court heard.

Kara Alexander, 47, is accused of murdering two-year-old Elijah Thomas and Marley Thomas, five, at their home in Dagenham, east London, in December 2022.

Selvin Thomas had split up with Alexander just three months earlier, jurors heard.

Mr Thomas was due to have the boys that weekend and was worried as he had not received any messages or calls from Alexander.

When he arrived at their home Alexander said they were upstairs sleeping, but he went to their bedroom to find they were both dead, Kingston Crown Court.

The cause of death was drowning or suffocation.

Alexander fled and was arrested about an hour later.

Prosecutor Philip Evans, KC, said: 'On Friday 16 December 2022 two young brothers, Marley Thomas and Elijah Thomas were found lying together in the lower bunk of their shared bunk bed, in their bedroom, at their home in Dagenham.

'They were both dead.

'Post-mortem medical examination of the deceased children showed no evidence in the case of either boy, of any natural disease, or any toxicological cause for their deaths.

Click here to resize this module

'Their deaths had instead been caused, in each case, by an interference with the normal mechanics of their breathing through smothering or immersion in water.

'On 16 December 2022 they lived together with just the defendant.

'The defendant had moved with the boys in September 2022 around three months before the events we are concerned with.

'The defendant, Marley and Elijah had previously lived with the father of the boys, and the defendant's then partner, Mr Selvin Thomas.

'They had lived together at an address in, Dalston Lane, Hackney.

'The defendant's relationship with Selvin Thomas, however, ended and the defendant moved out with the boys to the address.'

Mr Thomas kept in regular contact with Alexander and his sons: 'Mr Thomas had expected to hear from the defendant by 16 December.

'This was because he was due to have the boys with him for that weekend. But he heard nothing. None of his phone calls or messages to her were answered. He became very worried.'

He travelled from Hackney to Alexander's home Dagenham on 16 December and knocked at the front door.

'After a time, the defendant answered, he wanted to know where the boys were,' said Mr Evans.

'The defendant told him that they were upstairs and that they were asleep.

'When he went into the house and upstairs into the boys' back bedroom, he found them dead in the bed. The defendant ran away.

'Following the discovery of Marley and Elijah, Mr Thomas - clearly very distraught - called the emergency services.

'The ambulance service and police attended, there was nothing that could be done for the boys they were very clearly dead and had been for some hours.'

There was no sign that anyone else other than Alexander had entered or been in the house, the court heard.

'The defendant had run away through gardens into a neighbouring street,' added Mr Evans.

'She was arrested about an hour or so later and was taken to the police station where her detention was authorised.

'The prosecution understands at this stage that Kara Alexander denies killing her two children in the sense that she did nothing to interfere with the normal mechanics of their breathing, whether through smothering or immersion in water.

'She denies intending to kill them or intending them serious harm, or indeed any harm.

'The prosecution case is that, if a person smothers or immerses a young child in water, the very least intention that person must have is to cause really serious harm to that child.

'This is all the more so where there are two children killed.'

Alexander, of Dagenham, denies two counts of murder.

The trial continues.