Four arrested after baby dies on camping trip in Staffordshire

Two women and two men arrested on suspicion of murder after death of three-month-old girl near Great Wyrley

Four people have been arrested on suspicion of murder after a three-month-old girl died in Staffordshire while camping with her family.

Officers said they were made aware of the death on Saturday at 8.45am after being called by paramedics from the West Midlands ambulance service, who were responding to a report of a child in cardiac arrest. An air ambulance was also sent but the child was pronounced dead at the scene.

Staffordshire police said they attended the scene in woodland off Strawberry Lane near Great Wyrley and arrested four people on suspicion of murder. This includes a 42-year-old man and 30-year-old woman from south Staffordshire, a 20-year-old woman from Wolverhampton and an 18-year-old man from Walsall.

Officers said all four had now been bailed with conditions while the investigation continued. DI Josh Lee, from Staffordshire police’s child protection team, said: “I want to assure the local community that we are working around the clock to investigate the circumstances of this tragic incident, which has understandably caused concern.

“While we can confirm that all four people have been arrested on suspicion of murder, we are still working hard to obtain further evidence and we are keeping an open mind as to the circumstances of the death at this very early stage, which we are treating as an isolated incident.

“All four people were arrested at the scene of the incident and have been released on bail.

“While we fully understand that speculation into the nature of this incident is likely to take place, we’d ask people to follow this page for factual, accurate updates as our investigation unfolds and to avoid sharing unconfirmed and speculative claims online.”

A spokesperson for West Midlands ambulance service said: “We were called to reports of a medical emergency near to Strawberry Lane at 8.39am on Saturday. Two ambulances, two paramedic officers and a helicopter from the Midlands air ambulance charity attended the scene.

“On arrival we discovered one patient, a female child. Ambulance staff immediately began administering advanced life support but sadly, despite their best efforts it became apparent nothing could be done to save her and she was confirmed dead at the scene.”