‘I’m haunted by the fear my precious child felt in that park’ says Brianna Ghey’s mum as she slams ‘remorseless’ killers
THE heartbroken mum of a murdered teen has today told of how she will forever be “haunted” by her daughter’s final moments.
Brianna Ghey was just 16 when she was knifed to death by two serial-killer-obsessed teenagers earlier this year.
The teens, a girl known as X and a boy known as Y, were today found guilty of murder after a jury deliberated for just four hours.
The cold-blooded killing unfolded in Linear Park in Warrington in February – with Brianna stabbed 28 times before she was found in a pool of her own blood by dog walkers.
The transgender teen had been lured to the park by the murderers, who were both 15 at the time of the bloodbath.
Her mother Esther today told of how the way Brianna died would haunt her for the rest of her days.
The heartbroken mum choked on her tears as she stood outside Manchester Crown Court following the verdict she welcomed.
Esther’s voice cracked as she said: “To know how scared my usually fearless child must have been when she was alone in that park with someone that she called her friend will haunt me forever.”
The mum said her daughter would always be remembered as “larger than life”.
She said: “She was funny, witty and fearless.
“We miss Brianna so much and our house feels empty without her laughter.”
Esther went on to say she had lost all sympathy for her daughter’s killers and is glad they will spend “many years in prison and away from society”.
She added the teens had not shown “an ounce of remorse”.
When the jury unanimously found the murderers guilty, their parents wept as they were warned they face life in prison when they are sentenced on a date yet to be set.
During a harrowing trial, jurors heard how the young killers had exchanged chilling text messages leading up to Brianna’s death.
At first these were innocent as Y gushed about his crush on X’s pal A but soon turned sinister as the teens became “preoccupied with violence, torture and death”.
The court was told the pair “encouraged one another to think about how they would actually carry out a killing”.
This culminated in a “kill list” of five people they wanted to murder before eventually settling on tragic Brianna.
FAILED MURDER ATTEMPT
X had grown “obsessed” with the teen and concocted a plot to kill her using medication.
Just 19 days before Brianna was slaughtered, the girl messaged her accomplice to let him know the grim plan had been put into action.
She said she believed she had given Brianna [painkillers] that “should have been enough to kill her”.
When the schoolgirl fell ill but did not die, the evil pair decided to choose a more gruesome method to murder Brianna.
In a note headed “Saturday 11th February 2023. Victim: Brianna Ghey” – the day she was killed – X outlined her plans.
The teen wrote: “Meet Y at wooden posts 1pm. Walk down to library…bus stop. Wait until Brianna gets off bus then the 3 of us walk to linear park. Go to the pipe/tunnel area.
“I say code word to Y. He stabs her in the back as I stab her in the stomach. Y drags the body into the area. We both cover up the area with logs etc”.
MURDER PLOT
They originally planned to meet Brianna on January 28 but Y said he would not be able to carry out the killing on a “school night”.
Fuelled by her bloodlust, X replied: “I don’t want to wait, I just want her to die. I want to see pure horror on her face and hear her scream in pain.”
The boy responded: “Really? All I wanted to see is what size d**k it had.”
In another message, girl X said: ” I really want one of its eyes. They have pretty eyes.”
She also wrote: “I want to stab her at least once even if she’s dead jus coz its fun lol.”
After deciding on a date, X settled in to watch her “favourite” film, Sweeney Todd, for the “9,000th time”.
The following morning, unwitting Brianna left her home to meet her killers in the park.
BRIANNA’S FINAL TXT
Esther said her daughter, who would often stay in at weekends due to her anxiety, had messaged to say she was meeting X and was on the bus.
Brianna had added: “I’m scared”.
Shortly after sending the text, she was discovered covered in blood and lying face down in mud by a couple who were out walking their dogs.
Brianna suffered “unsurvivable” injuries, including catastrophic blood loss after she was knifed in the back and chest.
X and Y had penetrated Brianna’s throat and lungs with the blade.
One stab wound reached a depth of 11cm and sliced through the teen’s heart.
Brianna also had “defensive” wounds to her arms and hands where she desperately attempted to fight her attackers off.
‘FALSE DEFENCE’
The court was told “many” of the stab wounds damaged Brianna’s bones and would have required “considerable force”.
Following the murder, X hatched a “false defence” to cover their tracks in case anyone looked at her phone.
She messaged Brianna saying: “Girl, is everything okay? Some teenage girl got killed in Linear Park It is on news everywhere.
“And why did you ditch us for some random man from Manchester. Like wtf. That is so f***ed up.”
This mystery 17-year-old boy was simply a fictitious invention of X and Y’s, with the teen girl telling him: “Make sure story adds up”.
She also shared a Snapchat tribute to Brianna, saying: “Brianna was one of the best people I have ever met, such an amazing friend.
“It is f***ing sickening what got done to her.”
KILLERS ‘IN IT TOGETHER’
But her plan unravelled when police found an unopened bottle of Dr Pepper and empty bottle of Coke near the scene that matched X and Y’s DNA.
Brianna’s blood was also discovered on a £13.50 hunting knife the boy had bought on a skiing holiday six weeks before the murder.
When officers raided X’s home, they found another note with a “plan to kill”.
This one said: “Slit throat, dismember body, place pieces in bin bags, bury bags 7 feet underground”.
Police also discovered notes about serial killers, including Jeffrey Dahmer, Richard Ramirez and Harold Shipman.
It was suggested during the trial X had used Y as her “hitman” – referring to the boy as a “Tesco John Wick”.
Both teens sought to blame each other for the killing and each claimed their backs were turned when the fatal blows were delivered.
But Ms Heer said the evidence showed they were “in it together”.
Tragically, no motive for the murder has been given – with the lead investigator saying both had a “thirst for killing”.
Timeline of terror - how Brianna's killing unfolded
2022
November
– The two teenagers discussed killing a child referred to in court as boy M.
December 5
– Girl X sends boy Y a video which was apparently an advert for an underground site for people who like rape, snuff, torture and murder.
December 15
– Girl X messages boy Y, telling him she is “obsessed over someone” called Brianna but did not have feelings for them.
2023
January 1
– Boy Y sends girl X a photograph of a hunting knife and tells her: “Spent my money. I bought a knife.”
January 23
– Girl X messages boy Y, telling him she gave Brianna so many tablets it “should have been enough to kill her”.
January 26
– The two teenagers compile a list of at least four people, as well as Brianna, they wanted to kill.
February 3
– Girl X sends boy Y a picture of a handwritten note of their plan of how to kill Brianna, titled “Saturday 11th February 2023. Victim: Brianna Ghey”.
February 11
1.41pm – Brianna sends her mother a message saying: “I’m on the bus by myself, I’m scared.”
1.53pm – Brianna meets girl X and boy Y at a bus stop in Culcheth.
2.30pm – Brianna messages a friend, describing girl X as “weird”.
3.06pm – Brianna sends a message to girl X saying “Girl where are you”.
3.13pm – Brianna is found lifeless by dog walkers Kathryn and Andrew Vize.
4.02pm – Brianna is declared dead at the scene.
February 12
– Girl X and boy Y are arrested at their homes.
February 15
Police find Brianna’s phone in a drain, stained with her blood in an area girl X and boy Y were seen walking shortly after the murder.