Deveca Rose: Mother found guilty of manslaughter after leaving four young sons to die in house fire

Deveca Rose, 30, had left her two sets of twins, aged three and four, locked inside the house in Sutton, southwest London, when the blaze broke out on the evening of December 16, 2021 when she went to Sainsbury’s nearby.

Rose denied charges of manslaughter and child cruelty, but after deliberating for three hours and 22 minutes, an Old Bailey jury found her guilty of four counts of manslaughter by a majority of 11 to 1. She was acquitted of child cruelty.

The court heard that the family had been living in squalid conditions, surrounded by rubbish and human waste. Prosecutor Kate Lumsdon KC said: “There was rubbish thickly spread throughout the house. The toilet and the bath were full of rubbish and could not be used. Buckets and pots were used as toilets instead.”

On the night of the fire, Rose had gone to the supermarket, leaving Leyton and Logan Hoath, aged three, and Kyson and Bryson Hoath, aged four, at their rented home. A fire, likely caused by a cigarette or tea light, trapped the boys inside, and they ran upstairs calling for help.

A neighbour tried to break down the front door before firefighters arrived and found the children’s bodies under beds. Despite being rushed to two hospitals, all four boys died from smoke inhalation.

Rose returned home while firefighters were still battling the blaze and was taken in by a neighbour. Initially, she claimed she had left the children with a friend named Jade, prompting further searches by firefighters. However, police later concluded that Jade either did not exist or was not at the house that day.

During police interviews, Rose admitted to leaving the boys home alone on previous occasions. The children's father, Dalton Hoath, said in a statement that Rose had left the boys alone once or twice before. He added that he was “devastated” and that his world had been turned “upside down” by the loss of his “young, boisterous lads.”

Paternal great-grandmother Sally Johnson testified that she had confronted Rose about leaving the boys alone. Rose would reply, “Oh no, I just went to the pop shop,” referring to a nearby store.

Step-grandmother Kerrie Hoath described the boys as “polite, carefree, and very much loved” but said Rose often refused to let her inside the house. On one occasion, Rose refused to let her use the toilet, directing her to a nearby Tesco instead.

The court also heard that social worker Georgia Singh had raised concerns about the family's welfare, but the case was closed three months before the fire. Singh agreed that Rose’s deteriorating physical and mental health, and refusal to let others see the children, were concerning.

Rose attended much of the trial via video link for medical reasons and declined to give evidence. While there was evidence that she may have been suffering from depression and a personality disorder, the prosecution argued that this did not provide a defence.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC described the case as “tragic” and adjourned sentencing to November 15, allowing Rose to remain on bail.