Christianne and Robert Shepherd (known as Christi and Bobby, respectively) were an English sister and brother from Horbury, West Yorkshire who died of carbon monoxide poisoning while on holiday in Corfu in October 2006. At the time of their deaths, Christi was seven years old and Bobby was six.
The cause of death was found to be a faulty gas boiler. Three people, including the manager of the hotel where they were staying, were found guilty of manslaughter by negligence following a criminal trial in Greece in 2010 and were each sentenced to seven years in prison. The jury at the inquest into Christi and Bobby's deaths, which was held at Wakefield Coroner's Court in 2015, returned a verdict of unlawful killing and concluded that travel group Thomas Cook had "breached its duty of care".
Deaths
In October 2006, Christi and Bobby Shepherd went on a one-week half-term holiday to the resort of Gouvia on the Greek island of Corfu with their father, Neil Shepherd, and his girlfriend Ruth Beatson. After an initial problem in which the family was allocated a room in the main building of the Louis Corcyra Beach Hotel, they were admitted to a semi-detached two-bedroom bungalow in the hotel's grounds.
Forty-eight hours after arriving, Beatson and the children started to feel unwell, with Bobby stumbling and appearing dizzy. Christi became ill shortly after going to bed on 25 October and her father went to fetch a carrier bag for her to vomit into but he collapsed. At approximately 11 am the following day, a chambermaid found the adults both unconscious and the two children dead. Both adults only discovered the news of the deaths when they regained consciousness in hospital some days later.
Investigation
A police investigation by West Yorkshire Police found that the holiday representative responsible for health and safety at the hotel had not received any specific training relating to it. The cause of death was identified as carbon monoxide poisoning caused by fumes which had seeped into the accommodation from a "decrepit" boiler situated in an outhouse directly adjacent to Bobby and Christi's bedroom.
Neil Shepherd and his girlfriend Ruth Beatson, together with the children's mother Sharon Wood and her husband Paul, campaigned in Corfu to secure a local police investigation and trial. The BBC's Samantha Haines later reported in 2010: "Their actions made them both well-known and not always popular with the locals […] BBC reporter Jenny Hill said the Corfu economy relied heavily on tourism and the publicity surrounding the case was 'unwelcome' on the island. But the family vowed to go back to Corfu again and again, until they could leave with what they said was 'justice' for the children."
2010 Greek trial
In February 2010, the trial of two Thomas Cook employees and ten Greek nationals began at Corfu Town courthouse. All of the defendants faced charges of manslaughter by negligence; one was later discharged. The three trial judges heard evidence from Harry Rogers, a mechanical engineer, who said the installation of the 'decrepit' boiler responsible for the deaths was the worst he had seen in 50 years. He told the court that the leak had been caused by a wired-out gas valve, a bypassed thermostat, the lack of a flue and chimney, and a gap between the bungalow and the outhouse containing the boiler. Comparing it to a loaded gun, he said: "You can play with a gun for so long and it may not go off, but in certain circumstances someone will get killed".
During the trial, the hotel staff, maintenance engineers and builders denied responsibility for the deaths, blaming each other through their lawyers.
The trial concluded in May 2010, with three of the defendants found guilty. They included the hotel's manager, Georgios Chrysikopoulos, the head of its technical department, Petros Stoyiannos, and its electrician, Christos Louvros. All three were sentenced to seven years' imprisonment. A further defendant, Dimitrios Xidias, was sentenced to two years' probation for breaching building regulations. However, in May 2015 it was reported that due to the Greek appeals process none had yet gone to prison.
The remaining defendants, including both Thomas Cook travel representatives, were cleared; the travel company was also cleared of any responsibility for the deaths of the children.