John Rytting was jailed for 13 years in 2017 on charges of child cruelty following Poppy Widdison’s death at his home
Little Poppy Widdison who was fed drugs including heroin before her tragic death
John Rytting has died at HMP Hull at the age of 49, according to the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman. Rytting was jailed for child cruelty charges at Hull Crown Court in 2017 over the death of four-year-old Poppy Widdison.
“Vivacious” Poppy from Grimsby died after suffering a cardiac arrest in 2013. Although the cause of death was inconclusive, tests revealed Poppy had been ingesting drugs – including diazepam, heroin, methadone and ketamine – for up to six months before her death.
Rytting was in a relationship with Poppy’s mother, Michala Pyke, at the time of the little girl’s death. “Unfit mother” Pyke, who moved to Hull after the death of her daughter, was also jailed for 13 years after the court heard she had been feeding her daughter an array of drugs.
Judge Jeremy Richardson QC told Pyke and Rytting they both “bear a huge responsibility for the death of a pretty and vivacious little girl”. When the sentence was handed down, Rytting replied: “Whatever.”
Poppy died at Rytting’s “squalid” Grimsby home, where prescription and illegal drugs were left “lying around”. He had been in a relationship with Pyke for about nine months.
Addressing his drug-dealing, Judge Richardson told him: “You were not running a corner shop but a large convenience store for drug addicts. You had a leading role.”
The pair considered Poppy to be an “inconvenience” to their relationship, the court heard. They were said to have fed her sedatives, which they referred to as “blue Smarties”.
Addressing Poppy’s mother, the judge said: “Poppy was born addicted to heroin. Her name is the plant from which heroin is derived.
“I don’t think this is any accident and reveals your (Pyke) deplorable attitude towards an innocent infant.”
Rytting died on April 22 this year. As is standard for all deaths in custody, the Ombudsman will now conduct an investigation.
Did you know you can make Hull Live a preferred source of Hull news in Google, which will mean you get more of our breaking news, exclusives, and must-read stories straight away? Here’s more information about what this means and how to do it – you can also do it straight away by clicking here.