Monster mum battered 18-month-old foster daughter to death

A MUM was found guilty of brutally battering an 18-month-old to death just months after becoming her legal guardian.

TRAGIC: Keegan Downer was handed to her killer foster mum by the local authorities

The little girl collapsed at her home on September 15 and died from a combination of Septicaemia, chest trauma and an old head injury.

She was found weighing just 1 stone 3lbs after suffering 200 separate injuries, Birmingham Crown Court heard. 

Keegan had suffered two broken legs and seven fractured ribs over a "sustained period of time," jurors were told during the trial at Birmingham Crown Court this month.

The tot's injuries were so horrific she was left with one thigh shorter than the other – leaving her in "excruciating pain," medical experts said.

KILLED: Social workers told a court that they were heartbroken over Keegan's death

Downer, 34, of Beckbury Road, Weoley Castle, Birmingham denied murder and causing or allowing the death of a child during a trial this month. 

In shock claims she accused her eldest son of abusing Keegan during the trial.

But after three hours of deliberation a jury found her guilty of both counts on Tuesday.

The prosecution claimed mum-of-four Kandyce Downer battered the tot more than 120 times.

Instead of calling emergency services after Keegan's collapse she drove to a tip to discard of the toddler's bloody mattress, jurors were told. 

When she returned she rang an ambulance claiming that her daughter "was not breathing".

She later told medical staff that she did not know when Keegan had stopped breathing because she was in the bathtub.

MURDERED: Keegan Downer suffered hundreds of injuries including broken limbs

Keegan had been under evil Downer's care for several months.

The tragic tot was removed from her heroin addict mother just days after her birth in March 2014. 

After ten months living in foster care Downer – the ex-wife of a cousin of Keegan’s natural father – was granted a Special Guardianship Order.

TOT: Keegan was born Shi-Ann and was removed from her mum days later

The court heard that Keegan had been making excellent progress before she was fostered by Downer and was a "healthy and happy" child.

No care professionals visited her in the three months before her death, a court heard. 

An investigation into whether social services could have intervened is underway, officials said.

The harrowing incident comes after monster mum Kathryn Smith was also found guilty ofmurdering her daughter Ayeeshia Smith.