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A teenage mother used a cigarette lighter to burn the wrists of her “utterly helpless” 11-month-old baby son.

A court heard how the little boy would have been left in “excruciating” pain by his 19-year-old mother holding the “extremely hot” lighter to his wrists.

The mother, who cannot be named for legal reasons, avoided an immediate jail term after being convicted of cruelty to a child aged under 16 following a trial.

The woman, from Cardiff , denied the offence and claimed someone else must have sneaked in to the child’s room and caused the injuries – something a judge branded implausible.

Cardiff Crown Court was told the mother – who no longer has custody of the child – had a history of self-harming in a bid to alleviate her own unhappiness.

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Judge Niclas Parry, who imposed a 12-month sentence of youth custody suspended for 18 months with a rehabilitation requirement and 200 hours of unpaid work, told the defendant: “This was a shocking case.

“For no apparent reason you applied an extremely hot, circular object to the inside of both of your little boy’s wrists.

“He was 11 months old, utterly helpless and utterly dependent upon you.”

Judge Parry said the evidence he had heard was that the infant’s hands would have been held very firmly before the burns were applied to have caused such defined circular marks.

“It is equally clear from the evidence that the pain would have been nothing short of excruciating,” he said, adding it was “frankly impossible that they had been caused by anyone other than you”.

“He would have been screaming,” Judge Parry said.

“You should have pleaded guilty. You had a trial and to this day you continue to deny your responsibility.”

The court heard the little boy has made a full recovery from his injuries.