Simon Vickers, 50, has been charged with murdering his 14-year-old daughter. (Image: Durham Constabulary)
A man has been convicted of murdering his 14-year-old daughter during a play-fight in the kitchen of their family home.
Simon Vickers, 50, stabbed his daughter Scarlett, 14, in their Darlington home in Country Durham on July 5 last year.
He was found guilty of her murder during a hearing at Teesside Crown Court, Middlesborough.
Mr Vickers had earlier denied both the and manslaughter of his daughter, claiming she died in a freak accident and that he was innocent of horseplay.
He alleged that he did not know exactly how Scarlett died.
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However, prosecutors said Mr Vickers was lying, arguing he picked up a knife when “irritated” and drove it into his daughter’s chest.
The jury came to a verdict after more than a week of deliberation. It rejected Mr Vicker’s testimony, in which he claimed he would never knowingly harm his child.
He had told police how the pair had been playing before blood started “gushing” from his daughter’s chest, the court heard.
Prosecutors said the 11cm wound was too deep to have been an accident.
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They argued the girl’s injuries indicated the knife must have been “held firmly” at the time.
Sarah Hall, Scarlett’s mother, was the only other person in the room when the horror incident occurred.
She backed her partner of 27 years, telling the court how Mr Vickers loved their only child and would never deliberately cause her harm.
Ms Hall looked visibly stunned when the jury issued its verdict.
Prosecutor Mark McKone KC said: “If you accept that Mr Vickers has lied about how Scarlett was killed, this must be because he has something important to cover up.
“This suggests that he does not have a truthful account which he considers to be innocent for you to even consider.
“In other words, Mr Vickers has not got an innocent explanation for wounding Scarlett when the knife was held in Mr. Vickers’ hand.”
Mr Vickers will be sentenced on February 10.