Five Appear at Crown Court Over Death of Newborn Baby in Sheffield
A 20-year-old mother accused of murdering her newborn daughter has appeared at crown court alongside four others charged in connection with the baby’s death.
Andrea Skopova is accused of murdering the girl, known only as “Baby S”, at Holywell Heights in Wincobank, Sheffield, on Sunday, August 30.
Skopova’s boyfriend, Peter Horvath Jnr, 19, and his parents, Peter Horvath, 38, and Nina Horvathova, 37, are also charged with murder.
All four face additional allegations of causing or allowing the death of a child and perverting the course of justice, relating to attempts to conceal the killing.
A fifth defendant, a 15-year-old girl who cannot be named because of her age, has been charged with perverting the course of justice.
Emotional Hearing at Sheffield Crown Court
The five defendants appeared at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday, sitting together in the glass-fronted dock.
They were watched from the public gallery by 26 members of their family and were accompanied by seven security guards and other court staff, as well as two Slovak interpreters.
All five defendants are Slovakian nationals.
Skopova and the 15-year-old girl reportedly sobbed throughout the hearing.
The distress also spread to the public gallery, with several people in tears. One woman was described as crying uncontrollably as the defendants were taken from the dock.
The reaction was so intense that Judge Sarah Wright ordered the public seating area to be cleared.
The judge remanded all five defendants in custody until their next court appearance on October 2.
A provisional trial date has also been set for April next year.
Previous Hearing Revealed Extent of Baby’s Injuries
The case was heard briefly at Sheffield Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, where prosecutors revealed further details about the circumstances surrounding Baby S’s death.
The court heard that the newborn had suffered 33 separate injuries, including 15 stab wounds.
Her body was later discovered wrapped in a towel and placed inside a blue bag on a washing machine in an outhouse, after emergency services were called to the property.
The disturbing discovery has since led to an investigation involving multiple defendants and allegations of an attempt to conceal what had happened.
Flowers and tributes have now been left near the property on Holywell Heights as the investigation continues.
The defendants remain in custody and have not been convicted of the offences alleged against them.