A mother who drowned her two young children at their home has been convicted of their murders by a jury at Kingston Crown Court.

47-year-old Kara Alexander from Dagenham, murdered two-year-old Elijah and five-year-old Marley Thomas in December 2022.

The children were found by their father in their beds.

Alexander denied murdering her children, claiming that they had drowned in the bath while she was asleep.

Post-mortem examinations concluded the boys had either drowned or suffocated, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.

She’ll be sentenced in April.

Detective Chief Inspector Paul Waller, who led the investigation, said: “Our thoughts are with the family, especially the boys’ father who found them dead when he went to collect them for the weekend after Kara Alexander had failed to return his messages.

“No parent should have to go through such a horrific experience, and then have to listen to the detailed evidence highlighting what led up to these events.

“I would also like to praise those who were first on scene – our colleagues and the paramedics – who also experienced this traumatic event first hand.

“This has been a difficult investigation for everyone involved. This guilty verdict cannot turn back the clock but it does provide the children’s family with some form of resolution.”