Justice at last as former probation worker GUILTY of scalding her five-year-old stepdaughter to death in 1978 with police saying: 'She never thought this would catch up with her'

By RYAN HOOPER, CRIME CORRESPONDENT Published: 13:03, 26 May 2026 | Updated: 13:16, 26 May 2026 A drugs kingpin-turned-probation worker has been found guilty of scalding her five-year-old stepdaughter to death in 1978 after new evidence exposed the killer's lies. Janice Nix now faces a return to prison - years after she was put away for serious drugs offences - after jurors dismissed her account of how little Andrea Bernard was burnt by a hot bath. Detectives praised Andrea's older brother Desmond for coming forward in 2022 and recalling how he heard his little sister scream 'the bath is too hot, mummy', placing Nix at the scene. He initially covered for Nix, who was then 19, after she promised not to beat him again if he backed her claims that she was outside, but said he could no longer live with the secret. Nix, who retired from the Probation Service in 2019 after turning her life around, repeatedly changed her account of what happened, successfully convincing a coroner that Andrea's death was a 'tragic accident'. But she shook her head and then cried hysterically as she was unanimously convicted today of manslaughter and child cruelty following a three-week trial at Isleworth Crown Court in west London. Police commended Mr Bernard's courage and said: 'Without him, there would be no case, there would be no answers for Andrea.' Nix told jurors Desmond was lying, and denied hitting the children or coaching them to parrot her version of events. Janice Nix has been convicted over the death of her stepdaughter, five-year-old Andrea Bernard, in 1978 Andrea Bernard, pictured the Christmas before she was scalded to death by her stepmother The former drug dealer was later commended for her work with the Probation Service following her release from prison in the 2000s Yet it can now be revealed how in her 2021 memoirs, published by HarperCollins, she admitted having 'a fiery temper', wanting to exact violent revenge on a rival drug dealer, and disclosed how her 'anger was murderous' when a close friend was beaten up. She also wrote how she taught her young daughter, Nadia, to lie to police if they ever asked her about her criminal activities. There is no mention of the bath incident with Andrea. The court heard how Andrea suffered severe burns to 50% of her body following the incident at the family home in Thornton Heath, south London nearly 50 years ago. Mr Bernard, now 56, described how his stepmother was 'furious' with Andrea when the pair got home from school on Tuesday June 6 1978. He said he was in his bedroom opposite the bathroom when he heard the screams. Weeping, he told the court: 'I could hear her shouting and slapping, and Andrea, of course, screaming and crying. 'Next thing I remember is the bath was running… I could hear footsteps back and forth. 'I could hear shouting from the bathroom. I could hear Janice shouting: "Get in the bath." Nix was arrested at Heathrow airport in 2022 after returning from Antigua Nix, pictured with her biological daughter Nadia, who was born after Andrea was killed 'And I could hear Andrea saying: "The bath is too hot, mummy." 'Then I heard screaming and splashing.' He said this lasted a 'couple of minutes', after which he said: 'Then I heard the screaming stopping. I could hear Janice telling Andrea to wake up. 'She was holding Andrea in a towel, and Andrea was limp. She was by the bathtub, she was cradling her. 'Her eyes were closed, sort of fluttering.' He said Nix, then known as Thomas, seemed 'panicked', and added: 'She asked me to say it was an accident, to say that we were in the garden when it happened, and that she would never beat me again. 'I lied, I told everyone that story.' Mr Bernard said Nix began abusing the children from 'day one' after she started living with them and their father, Desmond Bernard senior, in around 1975. Nix tried to hide her face when she appeared at the magistrates' court for her first appearance in February 2025 The brother said Nix hit him with a pot, beat him with a belt, stubbed a cigarette out on him, bit him, and forced him to eat cat food. These were all 'punishments', he said. Mr Bernard said he and his sister were forced into a freezing cold bath just days before the fatal incident took place. He told jurors: 'I don't know what we did. 'I don't know what we had done but we were shivering in that bath and she knew it was cold, because we told her it was cold.' Andrea died in a specialist burns unit in hospital five weeks after being scalded, in agonising pain. Experts believe Andrea was forced or ordered into water exceeding 50C, potentially around 60C, which would have caused unspeakable damage to her young skin. Nix initially told police she was in the garden at the time, and that Andrea later came downstairs fully dressed and complaining of having 'itchy legs' after being sent off to have a bath unsupervised. But she changed her story in 2022 following Mr Bernard's disclosure, claiming she ran into the house when she heard Andrea scream. In both accounts, she denied being in the bathroom at the time. Nix was known as Mama J while working as a drugs kingpin from the 1980s Nix, who was working full-time as a clerk in the city, could not explain to jurors why she was at home that afternoon. Nor could she articulate why her initial lie would have protected her from allegations of neglect, given the second version of events still meant the girl was on her own. During cross-examination by prosecutor Jocelyn Ledward KC, she said Andrea was sent for a bath at 4pm because she was dirty from school - even though she maintained the little girl and her brother, eight, would be playing in the garden afterwards. She also said she could not remember crucial details about the incident, regularly changing her mind about whether Andrea was clothed or not. Mr Bernard kept what really happened to Andrea to himself for 44 years until he began receiving counselling and therapy in 2022. He said: 'I went to counselling and therapy so I could deal with this, because I couldn't carry on. 'This was part of my process to tell my parents what happened, and to tell my family what happened, and to just be truthful about it.' Met Detective Constable Fran Homer, who led the investigation, said the case would never have been reopened without the brother's new evidence, which 'rang alarm bells' with detectives. She said: 'I don't think she (Nix) ever, ever thought that this would quite catch up with her. 'I think she just always believed that it would not get this far.' She said Nix showed 'no remorse' during her witness testimony, and accused her of repeatedly trying to 'minimise' her role in what happened - adding the ordeal would have been 'torture' for Andrea. She said: 'I think he (Desmond) has found it very difficult, knowing that he has stood and told the truth, that she has stood there and lied and tried to discredit him and muddy waters.' Detectives suggested the case - the suspicious death of the young, black girl in south London 50 years ago - was not investigated with enough rigour at the time, given the inquest was held just a week after Andrea died, and lasted less than a day. Detective Inspector Louise Caveen said: 'Whether it was thorough enough, we can't really say. 'We're very confident that this wouldn't happen again in the current climate.  'There are lots more safeguards in place, and certainly our training is very different now.' The court heard Nix had a host of previous convictions, including a nine-year sentence in the 1990s and eight years in the 2000s for drugs offences when she was known by aliases including Nasty Girl and Mama J. She spent six years working for the Probation Service in London before she retired in 2019. Nix, of Clapham in south London, was remanded in custody and will be sentenced at a later date. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? 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