Two British teens have been convicted of luring a transgender girl to a park in February and murdering her in what authorities called “a horrifying attack.”
On Feb. 11, 2023, Brianna Ghey, 16, was fatally stabbed 28 times in the head, neck and chest in broad daylight, according to British authorities.
Her brutalized body was discovered that afternoon along a path in Linear Park in Culcheth, a village outside of Warrington in northwest England.
On Wednesday, after an 18-day trial at Manchester Crown Court, a 16-year-old boy from Leigh and a 16-year-old girl from Warrington were found guilty of murdering Ghey, the Cheshire Constabulary said in a statement.
Fifteen years old at the time of the vicious stabbing, the teens have been identified only as girl X and boy Y because they are minors.
On Thursday, following a petition from British newspapers, a judge ruled that the two teens can be named by the media when they are sentenced on Feb. 2, The Independent reports.
They face mandatory sentences of life in prison.
“We miss Brianna so much,” her mother, Esther Ghey, said at a press conference after the verdict. “The house feels so empty without her laughter.
“To know how scared my usually fearless child must have been when she was alone in that park with someone she called her friends will haunt me forever,” she said.
She said she felt sorry for the defendants until she realized they hadn’t shown “an ounce of remorse” for killing her daughter, The Standard reports.
Detectives from the Force’s Major Investigation Team “spent months piecing together the case, gathering vital evidence, speaking to numerous witnesses, viewing hours of CCTV footage, and carrying out forensic enquiries,” the Constabulary said in the statement.
During the trial, the court heard how the female defendant developed a friendship with Brianna prior to the attack “and spent a significant amount of time trying to convince Brianna to meet up with her and the boy in Culcheth that day,” the Constabulary said in the statement.
“They led Brianna deep into the park before brutally murdering her,” the statement said.
“However, their frenzy was cut short when they were disturbed by two dog walkers who suspected something suspicious, and they quickly fled the scene together,” the statement continued.
Brianna’s lifeless body was discovered by the dog walkers, who immediately called the police.
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The two teens were quickly identified as suspects “after a number of eye witnesses came forward following a large media appeal,” the statement said
They were arrested 24 hours after the incident and were subsequently charged with Brianna’s murder.
Searches were conducted at the defendants’ home addresses and their mobile phones were seized by detectives for telecoms analysis.
“At this point of the investigation, it became apparent that the defendants had an unhealthy fascination with murder and torture,” the statement said.
Investigators found a hand-written note detailing their plan to kill Brianna while searching the female suspect’s bedroom.
A hunting knife, believed to be the murder weapon and found with traces of Brianna’s blood on it, was also recovered from the boy’s bedroom.
Investigators also found thousands of deleted text messages between the two defendants on their phones.
“This evidence proved that the pair had discussed their sadistic fantasies for months prior to the attack and had thought of multiple ways in which they could kill a number of children, including Brianna,” the statement said.
The messages also demonstrated that there had been previous attempts on Brianna’s life, according to police.
At first, “both defendants vehemently denied any involvement in Brianna’s death but when the messages (that they thought were irrecoverable) were put to them, they began to turn on each other,” the statement said.
Both pleaded not guilty to Brianna’s murder.
Detective Inspector Nige Parr of the Major Investigation Team, and Senior Investigating Officer for Operation Moment, said: “Today, two teenagers have been found guilty of Brianna’s murder. I hope this result brings about some closure for Brianna’s family and helps them as they try and rebuild their lives.
“Brianna did not deserve her fate. She was targeted because she was different, and betrayed by someone she thought was a friend, and for her to have lost her life as a result of their senseless actions is tragic in every sense of the word.”
