Horror discovery in bathtub after cruel mum forced daughter, 8, to move out

Horror discovery in bathtub after cruel mum forced daughter, 8, to move outA cruel mum has been jailed after police discovered her eight-year-old daughter's body. The tragic child suffered a terrible fate in her final daysNewsCally Brooks Features Writer05:00, 04 Apr 2026View 4 ImagesSophia Mason was discovered dead in her mother's homeA woman is facing more than a decade behind bars after forcing her eight-year-old daughter to live in a shed - and leaving her to die.‌Samantha Johnson, 34, pleaded no contest to manslaughter and two counts of child abuse in the death of her daughter Sophia Mason.‌Prosecutors dropped the murder charge as part of a plea deal, but a judge on Thursday sentenced Johnson to 15 years and eight months in prison. Police discovered Sophia in a bathroom on March 11, 2022, in Merced, US.‌Her body was found in a decomposing condition after she was reported missing. Johnson was arrested immediately, while her boyfriend Dhante Jackson was taken into custody about six months later. He was released from prison with credit for time served.READ MORE: 'Traumatic' true crime series is leaving Netflix fans 'bawling'READ MORE: 'Enthralling' crime thriller compared to Robert De Niro classic confirms streaming homeView 4 ImagesSamantha Johnson took a plea deal to avoid a murder chargeJohnson, from California, had left her daughter with family members shortly after the girl's birth, according to the San Jose Mercury News. Her grandmother raised her until Johnson returned and took back custody of her in 2021.‌For the next 15 months, there were at least seven reports of Sophia being abused, however social services workers allegedly did not intervene, according to local reports."This isn't justice," Sophia's aunt Emerald Johnson wrote in a victim impact statement, per the Mercury News. "Sophia didn't get to live her life. Her life was cut short. [Samantha] and Dhante both deserve to rot i...