A 15-year-old boy has been found guilty of murdering a 12-year-old girl after stabbing her in the neck in Liverpool city centre last year.
Boy A, who cannot be named for legal reasons and who was 14 when he killed Ava, attacked Ava White on November 25 following an argument over him filming her on Snapchat while she was out with friends.
Prosecutors said Boy A, who was with three other teenage boys, laughed after stabbing her with a flick knife and ran away. He tried to cover up his crime by hiding the weapon and his coat. The incident happened around 8.30pm near a busy shopping street after the northwestern English city’s Christmas lights were switched on.
The boy, who told police officers to “shut up” during interviews in custody, said he had stabbed her in self defence because he feared she was armed herself. He had denied murder, but was found guilty by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday.
The judge, Justice Yip, told the boy, who began crying after the verdict, that he should expect a life sentence, although how much that would be spent in custody will be decided during sentencing on July 11.
The number of young people killed across the UK is on the rise, with a record number of teenagers killed in London last year, most often by other teenagers using knives or machetes. Analysis carried out by VICE World News last year found that the use of Snapchat was fueling violence and murder among an increasingly young group of teenagers.
Dame Rachel de Souza, the children’s commissioner for England, told VICE World News the big social media platforms are not doing enough.
“The death of any child is a huge tragedy and when it’s at the hands of another child it both shocks and rightly, raises questions.
“That the reported touch point for this killing surrounded social media is another example of why I’ve been so focussed on children’s interactions with the digital world. It’s not just about how we keep them safer online, but also how what happens online can spill over and have serious consequences in the real world. It can take many forms, whether it be bullying, sexualised content or physical violence.
She added: “I have met with all of the major digital platforms and been clear that so far they’ve not done nearly enough.”