A woman has been jailed after repeatedly injecting a child with a syringe filled with human poo to make them ill.
Elizabeth Faragher, 43, purposefully injected the child under her care with needles that had been contaminated "with faeces", Preston Crown Court heard.
The child, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was left with walking difficulties and other long-term health issues.
She had been diagnosed with a medical condition when she was young as Faragher was trusted to administer the medication.
But the evil woman deliberately soiled the needles before using them between 2016 and 2017.
Yesterday, the court heard that Faragher never explained her motivation for the cruel acts, but she had turned to alcohol following the tragic death of her husband.
Faragher, of Barrow, in Cumbria, admitted five charges of administering a poison or noxious substance with intent and one charge of cruelty to a person aged under 16 and was jailed for five years and 10 months.
Cumbria Police said they began their investigation in December 2016, after liaising with health professionals regarding the health of the child.
The force explained: "The child had been taken to hospital on numerous occasions with infections which were so serious as to require transfer to Alder Hey hospital for treatment.
"Doctors were concerned about the seriousness of the infections and their investigations showed that on the majority of the occasions the child was brought to the hospital, bacteria normally only present in faeces was found to be present.
"Further investigations ruled out the possibility of faecal matter leaking from the child’s gut, which increased the concern that the bacteria was finding its way into the child’s system via deliberate injection."
After what was hailed as a "lengthy and thorough investigation" Faragher was charged with a string of offences and was due to stand trial at Preston Crown Court on April 25.
However, when she appeared in court on the day she pleaded guilty to them all.
The court heard Faragher was struggling following the death of her husband. She was drinking a bottle of vodka or more a day. The retail manager never explained her motivation for committing the offences.
Detective Inspector Fae Dilks of Cumbria Police said: "This was an extremely distressing case for all involved - from the health professionals who sought to do everything in their power to help and safeguard the child to those detectives tasked with conducting what was a complex and lengthy investigation.
"This was an extremely rare case where the evidence showed an individual had set out to deliberately make a child under her care seriously ill.
"We would like to thank our partner agencies in healthcare for their support and in helping ensure the child in question is safeguarded."
