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Twins' inquest will examine mental health care of killer mum in the lead-up to their deaths in Margate

An inquest into the death of toddler twins killed by their mother will examine the mental health care she received before she carried out the heinous act.

Samantha Ford was jailed for 10 years last year for drowning 23-month-old Jake and Chloe in the bath at her Margate home on Boxing Day 2018.

Samantha Ford
Samantha Ford

Her actions were described as a twisted act of vengeance against her estranged husband, Steven, during a trial at the Old Bailey.

A full inquest into the children's deaths was due to be held last September, but instead was delayed due to her legal team pushing for a wider investigation into the support she received before they died.

At the time, furious Mr Ford accused his wife of trying to shift the blame somewhere else.

This week, speaking to KentOnline, Mr Ford says he has now been told by police that an Article 2 inquest will proceed later this year, meaning the mental health support she received from the NHS before his babies were killed will be examined.

He claims this is simply a PR exercise to make her look like the victim.

Chloe and Jake Ford. Picture: Steven Ford
Chloe and Jake Ford. Picture: Steven Ford

"My children are dead and this inquest is not going to change that outcome," he said.

"She is trying to put the blame somewhere else.

"It's to make her look like the victim - but she's not the victim, my children are."

He says while he cannot deny his wife was struggling before she carried out the "evil" crime, her troubles were nothing out of the ordinary for someone going through a separation.

"People can't understand that type of inhuman behaviour so they want to find a reason for it, like postnatal depression," he said.

Steven Ford with the twins. Picture: Facebook
Steven Ford with the twins. Picture: Facebook

"Ordinary people can't understand what it is just to be evil.

"But as time has gone on and more information has come out, they are starting to see."

An Article 2 inquest is described by the CPS as an enhanced inquest held in cases where "the State or its agents have failed to protect the deceased against a human threat or other risk".

In the Ford case, the mental health care she received in the lead-up to the twins' deaths will be called into question.

The mum, who was living in Castle Drive near Westwood Cross, was sentenced to 10 years - to be served in a psychiatric unit until she is deemed fit for prison - after entering a guilty plea of manslaughter by diminished responsibility.

The court heard how she had Google-searched how to drown someone in the weeks leading up to the twins' deaths and one psychologist stated she was a "narcissist" who was "trying to appear more severely ill than she is".

It was also heard the "materialistic" mother had become obsessed with losing her “perfect life” in Qatar after the family moved back to Kent.

She left a suicide note before attempting to kill herself by driving into a lorry hours after killing her children.

For more information on why we cover inquests, click here.

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