Brianna Ghey murder trial: Girl X says boy Y stabbed teen

The 16-year-old, identified only as girl X, from Warrington, became visibly upset as she told the jury she saw another teenager, identified only as boy Y, from Leigh, knifing Brianna.

Brianna was stabbed 28 times in her head, neck, chest and back with a hunting knife after, prosecutors allege, she was lured to Culcheth Linear Park on the afternoon of February 11.

Both girl X and boy Y, aged 15 at the time, now both 16, deny murder and are blaming each other for Brianna’s death. Neither can be named due to their age.

Jury members at Manchester Crown Court have seen an alleged handwritten ‘murder plan’ found in girl X’s bedroom.

Jurors have also been shown text messages between girl X and boy Y, allegedly showing the plan to lure Brianna to the park and kill her.

Girl X, sitting in the witness box beside an intermediary to look after her welfare, wiped away a tear as she denied murder and said any talk of harming Brianna was just “a fantasy”.

She said she expected that herself, boy Y, and Brianna were just going to “hang out” in the park that Saturday afternoon.

She said they stopped near a bench but she then became a bit bored and walked away from the bench to stretch her legs.

Richard Pratt, defending girl X, said: “Did something attract your attention?”

Girl X replied: “Yeah. When I walked off, I heard a noise like someone screaming and that’s when I turned around.”

Mr Pratt said: “What did you see when you turned around?”

Girl X replied: “I saw boy Y stabbing Brianna.”

Mr Pratt asked: “How many times did you see boy Y stabbing Brianna?”

Girl X replied: “Around five times. I saw her fall and land face down on the floor. I saw him stood next to her, leaning over, looking down at her.”

Mr Pratt continued: “How did this make you feel?”

Girl X said: “I was in shock.”

Mr Pratt said: “Did you expect that was going to happen? Did you want it to happen?”

“No,” girl X replied.

Earlier, girl X admitted watching internet torture and killing material from the ‘dark web’ and having an interest in serial killers.

She also admitted she had “dark fantasies” of killing other children - including Brianna – but had no intention of making any of it a reality.

Brianna Ghey leaving her home on the day of her death (Image: Cheshire Police)

Mr Pratt continued: “You told the jury of your interest in films. Did you like seeing Brianna stabbed in that way?”

“No,” girl X replied.

Mr Pratt said: “What did you do?”

Girl X replied: “I knew if I tried to step in boy Y could easily have overpowered me in that situation.”

She denied taking part in the stabbing or telling boy Y to stab Brianna.

Girl X added: “I walked over to see whether I could see her breathing. I couldn’t.”

She said that boy Y ran off and she “panicked” and ran with him, and that she did not ask him about what had happened because she was “in shock”.

She added: “I was scared if I tried to ask him he could come after me thinking I could snitch.”

Justice Amanda Yip, presiding over the trial, asked girl X if she was alright as she appeared to wipe tears away with the sleeves of her cardigan, before being handed a tissue by her intermediary.

The court heard that the following day, girl X told her mother, and then the police, that Brianna had been with her but left to meet someone from Manchester.

Asked why she did not tell the truth, girl X said: “I was scared because obviously I knew how bad it would look just based off of text messages, so I was defending myself as well as boy Y at the time.”

She said she sent messages via Snapchat to Brianna after her death because she started to get “really paranoid”.

Finishing his questioning, Mr Pratt asked girl X how she felt about the fact Brianna had died.

She replied: “I do feel really upset about it.”

Girl X confirmed a crumpled, handwritten note of an alleged “murder plan” to kill Brianna found on her bedroom floor by police, had been written by her.

But she said it was another fantasy and not a real plan to carry out a killing.

Notes were also made on serial killers including Jeffrey Dahmer, Richard Ramirez and Harold Shipman in a black Pukka notebook, the court herad.

Jurors have heard X and Y had a fixation with torture, violence and death, with girl X describing herself as a “satanist”.

The trial continues.

Cheshire Police and the Crown Prosecution Service remind everyone that criminal proceedings against both defendants are active, and that they have the right to a fair trial.

It is extremely important that there should be no commenting or sharing of information or speculation which could in any way prejudice these proceedings.

Due to their age, reporting restrictions are in place for both defendants, entitling them to anonymity, as well as other children involved in the evidence.