Boy and girl both found GUILTY by jury of murder of Brianna Ghey

Brianna died aged 16 after being stabbed with a hunting knife 28 times in her head, neck, chest and back in Culcheth Linear Park on the afternoon of February 11.

The verdicts came after a four-week trial, and after four hours and 40 minutes of deliberations by a jury of seven men and five women.

Both defendants, who cannot be named due to their age, denied murdering the transgender Birchwood schoolgirl and blamed each other for Brianna’s death.

The two 16-year-olds, aged 15 at the time of the offence, referred to only as girl X, from Warrington, and boy Y, from Leigh, both said their backs were turned when the other defendant began stabbing Brianna in a “frenzied” fashion.

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The trial heard both defendants had a fascination for violence, torture and murder and had planned the killing for weeks.

Jurors heard girl X was “obsessed” with Brianna, enjoyed watching internet torture and killing material from the “dark web” and had an interest in serial killers.

The jury was also shown a "murder plan" on how to kill Brianna, along with phone messages girl X and boy Y exchanged, including a "kill list" of other children they planned to harm.

On the opening day, prosecutor Deanna Heer said: “The prosecution case is that, whoever delivered the fatal blows, both defendants are equally guilty.

“Acting together, they planned and executed their plan to kill her.”

The jury heard how both defendants accepted that they were present in Linear Park with Brianna at the time she was killed, and boy Y accepted that he took his hunting knife with him.

However, both denied inflicting any injury upon her, and participating in her killing in any way, choosing instead to blame each other.

The prosecution did not have to prove who it was that wielded the knife – only that they both intentionally participated in the killing in some way, assisting or encouraging the other to commit the offence, intending that Brianna be killed or at the very least very seriously injured.

Ms Heer said: “The evidence clearly demonstrates that the defendants acted together to bring about Brianna’s death, and that they intended to kill her.

“The messages they exchanged show how they encouraged one another and egged each other on, how they thought about and discussed how to kill and how they planned to get Brianna to Linear Park, where they thought they would be undisturbed.

“How they each encouraged the other to bring a knife and how they planned to kill Brianna by stabbing her in the neck and the back, just as she was in fact stabbed in the neck and the back.

“In the aftermath of Brianna’s killing, they left the scene together and remained in contact with each other, keeping each other informed of the progress of the investigation and planning what they should say to the police.”

Girl X told the trial said she enjoyed “dark fantasies” but had no intention to ever turn them into reality, while boy Y said he went along with them and did not take them seriously.

Both say they never expected the other to act on them.

Before sending them out to deliberate, Justice Yip told the jury: “On the facts of the case and the evidence before you, they can’t both be telling the truth.”

Giving legal directions to jurors after the prosecution and defence cases concluded, she added: “The defendants are each charged with Brianna Ghey’s murder.

“The prosecution case is that they acted together to bring about her death and both intending that she should be killed.

“Each defendant says that the other defendant is the person who stabbed Brianna and was not expecting or wanting Brianna to be killed.

“You should approach the evidence calmly and dispassionately. You must not be influenced by any emotional reaction or sympathy for anyone involved.”