Man who fed drugs to girl, 4, dies in prison

A man who fed drugs to his former partner's four-year-old daughter before her death has died in prison, the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman (PPO) has confirmed.

John Rytting, 49, was jailed in 2017 for child cruelty and supplying drugs after Poppy Widdison collapsed at her home in Grimsby and later died in hospital from a cardiac arrest in June 2013.

Poppy's mother, Michala Pyke, was also jailed for the same offence and the pair both denied giving the four-year-old drugs in the months before her death.

According to the PPO, Rytting died in HMP Hull on 22 April. The ombudsman is investigating, which is standard procedure for all deaths in custody.

A spokesperson for the PPO said it would publish the findings of its inquiry following the conclusion of an inquest into his death, which is due to open and adjourn on Tuesday.

Rytting was serving a 13-year jail term following his conviction in 2017.

At the time, a trial at Hull Crown Court heard he and Pyke encouraged Poppy to eat sedatives because they felt she was an inconvenience to their relationship.

A post-mortem examination found Poppy had ingested a variety of drugs for up to six months before her death, including significant amounts of heroin, methadone and ketamine.

They did not contribute to Poppy's death but experts told jurors there was a "long period of ill-treatment and neglect by the grossly inappropriate administration of various drugs to the child".

A serious case review into Poppy's death also found agencies had missed several chances to protect her.

The review found council services did not know the extent to which "she was exposed to risk and harm" on a daily basis.

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