Couple who failed to tell anyone they’d had a baby, starved and left him naked to die then buried him in a shallow grave

A couple is accused of murdering their baby, who died four days after birth after they failed to feed or clothe him, before burying him naked in a shoe box in a shallow grave. Anthony Clark, 35, and Catherine Davies, 25, are accused of allowing their baby to be dehydrated and starved to death. Before the child was born, Catherina hated that she was pregnant and wrote in her diary that her baby was a "monstrosity" who was making her fat and also that the pregnancy was "pissing" her off.
The couple, who were living together in Bolton, England, had their son on August 23, 2016, but they told no one they had welcomed a child. They then neglected the child and failed to buy him clothes or food. Days later, he died. Clark and Davies are alleged to have put him in a shoe box, which was wrapped in Sellotape, before burying him in a shallow grave at Heaton Cemetery at night. The relevant authorities were never told about the baby's existence or death.

The couple had a child before the one who died but the child, referred to as Child A, was taken into care after being neglected by the parents. Manchester Crown Court heard the parents "prioritized" their own needs over that of their child - an action which led to the death of the second child. Clark and Davies both deny murder while Clark has pleaded guilty to concealing a birth. Davies denies concealing a birth.  The court heard how during the baby's short life the couple left their address with him only once, on August 24 so Clark could sign on at the Job Centre to obtain benefits, and CCTV showed the baby being handed over to Davies. They were then seen going to Morrisons supermarket where they bought food and provisions for themselves but no baby products or food for the baby.
Police were only alerted when Davies contacted her mother, Marjorie, asking for money in September last year. She then spoke to her care worker, Jean Todd, and the police were contacted. When police showed up at their home, Davies initially denied the birth of her child and blamed her mother's mental health for making up lies. Clarke also denied the existence of the baby when first interviewed by police. Police then carried out door-to-door inquiries and spoke with a neighbor who said Davies told him she was pregnant but later claimed it was a joke. Both Clarke and Davies later confessed they had a baby and claimed he died in his sleep. The jury was told how a diary belonging to Davies was found in the flat by police. In her diary, she wrote how "pregnancy is pissing me right off", the jury heard.
She also wrote: "Don't want hosp. Don't want head full on easier to dispose of and less complicated at the end. Less people involved."
Referring to Clark, Davies also noted: "You make me feel special while the monstrosity makes me feel fat. You make me feel loved while I hate the bump."
On the day the baby is understood to have been born, Davies wrote in her diary: "gave birth to baby two, baby boy three months early."
Then on August 27, she wrote in the diary: "died in sleep".
On August 30, she wrote: "buried in box. Love you always".
The baby was found in Heaton Park Cemetery by sniffer dogs, wrapped in a blanket with teddy bears on it, in a shoe box wrapped in sellotape. A post-mortem examination was unable to reveal a cause of death, but doctors agreed the child was malnourished.
Clarke and Davies' trial continues.