A DAD whose teen daughter died when her weight ballooned to 23st told police: "I'm not the perfect father", a court heard.
Kaylea Titford, 16, was allegedly left to die at 23 stone in a filthy room at home in Newton, Wales.
The schoolgirl had been eating five takeaways a week and "living in conditions not fit for animals", jurors were told.
She was found in her squalid bedroom on October 10, 2020, covered in maggots.
Her dad Alun Titford, 45, allegedly neglected Kaylea by allowing her to become morbidly obese.
Mold Crown Court heard today he told police after his arrest that Kaylea's mum Sarah Lloyd-Jones did "everything around the house and for their disabled daughter."
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He added: "I’m just not a very good partner and dad. I don’t do much around the house.
"She’s a female. I couldn’t do things that Sarah could do.
"I feel bad, thinking back now I think I could have done more."
Titford said his daughter "very rarely talked to me" and was a "cheeky teenager".
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He claimed she had not used the shower for a "long time" and her shower chair was "kept for the dog" as Kaylea could no longer fit in it.
Titford told police his daughter was instead washed with wipes dipped in soapy water, and her hair was cleaned using dry shampoo.
She would go to the toilet on pads supplied by the local hospital, the transcript read.
Titford added: "We avoided going to the doctors because of Covid. Kaylea is one of the people that had to shield.
"Like I say, I'm not the perfect father."
Jurors heard the schoolgirl, who had spina bifida, was "fiercely independent" before the pandemic – taking part in PE lessons in her wheelchair.
But when lockdown hit, Kaylea was allegedly left to die in a filthy room.
The teen was forced to use "puppy pads" to go to the toilet on her urine-soaked floor.
Her nails had also not been cut for six months and "well grown" maggots were found on her body, it was said.
Jurors were told there were traces of fly excrement on her chair hoist.
Forensic entomologist Amoret Whitaker also told the court there were maggots on Kaylea's body as well as all over her soiled bedsheets and absorbent pads.
The maggots appeared to be "feeding on the body itself" for at least 48 hours.
Kaylea's hair was also matted and the teen, who needed help with everyday tasks, had not been washed for "several weeks".
Prosecutor Caroline Rees KC said: "She lived and died in squalor and degradation."
When police arrived at the home, one officer was "almost sick" from the stench of unwashed faeces in her bathroom.
Ms Rees KC said at the time of her death, Kaylea weighed 22.9 stone and was "morbidly obese" with a BMI of 70.
Titford denies gross negligence manslaughter and causing or allowing the death of a child.
Kaylea's mum, Sarah Lloyd-Jones, 39, has pleaded guilty to the same charges, jurors were told.
The parents allegedly failed in their "duty of care" to get Kaylea exercise and give her a healthy diet.
They are also accused of failing to keep her clean and "medically safe".
The trial continues.
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