A nurse whose 10-week-old baby died after being left home alone for more than eight hours has been jailed.
Ruth Auta appeared at Bolton Crown Court last week (Tuesday 10 September), where the court heard that she left her nurses’ accommodation shortly after 6:30am on 20 December 2022 to carry out her shift at Royal Bolton Hospital – leaving behind her son, Joshua Akerele, in the process.
The 28-year-old returned more than eight hours later, and then, at 3:24pm, called for an ambulance reporting that her son “was not breathing”.
Despite attempts by paramedics to resuscitate him, Joshua sadly could not be saved and was pronounced dead at 4:40pm, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) revealed.
Experts could not confirm the cause of Joshua’s death, and say he was “a healthy baby in all respects”.
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It’s thought that he may have overheated due to the layers of clothing and bedding he was wrapped in, but other potential causes of death “could not be ruled out”.
Nurse, Ruth Auta, 28, left her 10-week-old baby, Joshua, home alone for over 8 hours while she worked her shift at Royal Bolton Hospital in December 2022.
Auta initially told the police that she had collected Joshua from a childminder after she had finished work, and then took him back home, fed him, placed him on her bed and fell asleep next to him, before claiming that it was when she woke up she found him unresponsive, however, police seized CCTV footage showing Auta leaving her flat at 6:47am without her baby and returning home alone at 3:13pm.
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Messages to the childminder asking her to tell the police she had looked after Joshua that day were also found on on Auta’s phone, but the childminder told officers she had not seen Joshua for a few days.
In her police interview, Auta gave no comment to the questions asked. She was released on bail whilst a full police investigation was carried out.
Despite the fact Auta gave no comment to the questions asked in her police interview, she was charged with cruelty to a child and pleaded guilty at Manchester Magistrates Court on 24 May 2024, with case adjourned to 21 June 2024 for sentence, and finally sentenced to three years in prison at Bolton Crown Court last week.
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Sara added “Ruth Auta has failed to show remorse throughout the case; she misled police about her childcare arrangements and then tried to evade justice by attempting to flee the country.
“Our thoughts and sympathies are with all those who been affected by Joshua’s death.”
Speaking following the sentencing last week, Sara Davie, who is the District Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, said: “Whilst she went to work to provide care for other people, Ruth Auta left the very person who needed her care the most home alone.
“As a nurse she should have known the dangers of leaving her baby unattended. As she begins her sentence, she must now live with the consequences of the terrible decision she made that day.
“Auta has failed to show remorse throughout the case, she misled police about her childcare arrangements, and then tried to evade justice by attempting to flee the country.
“Our thoughts and sympathies are with all those who been affected by Joshua’s death.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Salford man jailed after pointing loaded gun at police and members of public while on the run
Emily Sergeant
A man from Salford has been jailed for more than a decade after he pointed a loaded gun at police officers and members of the public while he was on the run.
Jay Conway, of Leicester Walk in Salford, appeared at Manchester Crown Court last week (6 March 2026) where he pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm without a licence, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, and assault of an emergency worker, as well as also pleading guilty to possession with intent to supply class A and class B drugs.
His sentencing comes after officers from Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) Salford Challenger team were patrolling Albert Park in plain clothes on Tuesday 20 May 2025.
They spotted a man riding an e-bike and wearing a balaclava, and attempted to detain him there and then, but despite their best efforts, he fled the area, brandishing what officers believed to be a pistol in the process.
The suspect – which was later identified as Conway – stole a bike and cycled on to Great Clowes Street, where a neighbourhood officer heading towards the incident attempted to detain him but he resisted. The officer deployed his Taser but he drew the pistol for a second time, pointing it at police and also at a member of the public.
Conway then dropped the firearm – which police later confirmed as a viable, loaded pistol – and a mobile phone, and fled for a second time.
Thanks to a ‘fast-paced and thorough’ investigation by specialist GMP teams, involving forensic analysis of the phone and CCTV which identified Conway as the suspect, he was arrested by armed officers the following day in Whalley Range.
“Nobody – a police officer or a member of the public – should be confronted by a gun,” said Detective Superintendent Simon Moyles, following Conway’s sentencing.
“These were frightening incidents and Conway is clearly a dangerous individual who is rightly serving a prison sentence. We need to commend and recognise our officers who showed immense bravery in trying to stop Conway.
“Guns have no place on our streets and the work we are doing in Salford, and across Greater Manchester, in relation to firearms incidents continues.
“If you know anyone who is using, or possesses, an illegal firearm, we urge you to get in touch with us as, for each firearm we recover, that’s potentially a life saved.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Nearly 300 new ‘social rent’ homes given go-ahead as part of £500m Wythenshawe regeneration
Emily Sergeant
Nearly 300 new homes are set to be built in Wythenshawe as part of a wider £500 million regeneration scheme.
In case you didn’t know, Placemaker Muse and Wythenshawe Community Housing Group submitted three separate planning applications for 422 new affordable homes back in December 2025, following a public consultation with locals.
Now, works on two of the three new communities can begin, with the third expected to get the green light in the coming weeks.
Brotherton House – which is a former office building – will be transformed into 216 new homes, including an extra care apartment building with 109 homes for people in later life and those living with dementia, while C2 The Birtles, also currently retail and office space, is situated next to the former market square and will be replaced with 81 one and two-bedroom apartments.
Alpha House, which is currently awaiting a planning decision, has now been demolished and will be rebuilt to provide 125 one and two-bedroom apartments – including 16 wheelchair accessible homes.
According to developers, all the homes will be ‘affordable, high-quality, and energy-efficient’, with additional outdoor and communal spaces to promote health and wellbeing.
The approval given to build these new homes forms part of the wider ‘ambitious’ plan to transform Wythenshawe over the next decade.
The wider masterplan for Wythenshawe will see up to 2,000 new homes created over the next 10 to 15 years, which will complement the wider investment currently underway in Civic – supported by £20 million of Government funding, and £11.9 million from Manchester City Council.
Nearly 300 new homes have been given the go-ahead as part of a £500m Wythenshawe regeneration scheme / Credit: Muse (Supplied)
New community facilities in the town include the Culture Hub – which is now underway – the Food Hall, currently awaiting a planning decision, new workspaces, and improvements to the outdoor spaces in Civic, all designed to create a ‘greener and more welcoming’ town centre.
“For us, this is about delivering the truly affordable homes local people have told us they need,” explained Andrea Lowman, who is the Executive Director of Development at Wythenshawe Community Housing Group.
“Every one of these homes will be for social rent, giving more families, older residents and people with additional needs the opportunity to live well in the heart of Wythenshawe.
“As the local social housing provider, we are focused not just on building new homes but on creating sustainable communities and making sure this investment strengthens the town centre for existing and future residents alike.”
Emily Sergeant -
16th September 2024 
