A former Shropshire soldier who killed his 21-month-old stepson and then allowed his wife to come under suspicion of murder has been jailed for five years.

Private Shaun Thompson, a member of the Royal Anglian Regiment, denied playing any part in the death of Kieran Edwards for two years after his death.

Passing sentence on Thompson, 25, after he pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Stafford Crown Court yesterday, Mr Justice Saunders said the soldier’s insistence that he had not harmed the youngster meant he could only be given limited credit for his plea.

He said Thompson, formerly of Forest Road, Market Drayton, had allowed his wife Jane to remain under suspicion of murder for a considerable period when he could have ended her ordeal by admitting his guilt.

Mr Justice Saunders told Thompson: “The medical evidence makes it clear that Kieran must have been either shaken or struck a blow.

“It is impossible to say for certain how hard the shaking or blow would have to be to cause the injury suffered by Kieran, but it must have been entirely inconsistent with the proper care of such a young child.

“While I take into account that the defendant did not intend to cause the death of the child, nor to cause him really serious harm . . . the court has to reflect the fact that a life has been taken.”

Thompson now faces being discharged from the army after admitting manslaughter but denying murder.

Rachel Brand QC, prosecuting, said Kieran died in hospital three days after suffering a substantial brain injury at his home in Forest Road in June 2007.

Miss Brand said Thompson, who has been in the army for eight years, began a relationship with Kieran’s mother in late 2005 when his regiment moved to Shropshire’s Tern Hill barracks.

She said that the defendant was left alone to care for Kieran at about 7pm on June 24, 2007, while his wife went out with a friend.

Medical experts later said that Kieran must have been subjected to shaking or a traumatic event during the following 30 minutes, which had caused swelling and bleeding around his brain.

Mr Mark George, for Thompson, said Kieran had died as a result of his client’s loss of self-control.

“It was two years after Kieran died before the defendant finally acknowledged that he – and he alone – was responsible for the injuries that caused Kieran’s death,” Mr George conceded.