Brianna Ghey news - live: Scarlett Jenkinson’s family breaks silence as teen jailed with Eddie Ratcliffe
Two teenagers jailed for life for transphobic and sadistic killing of 16-year-old
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The family of teenager killer Scarlett Jenkinson has broken their silence as they said they have been living out their “worst nightmares”.
Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe stabbed 16-year-old Brianna Ghey 28 times with a hunting knife in a horrific attack on 11 February last year after luring her to Linear Park near Warrington.
The judge at Manchester Crown Court said the “exceptionally brutal” murder had elements of sadism by Jenkinson and transphobic hate by Ratcliffe.
Saying their lives were “in turmoil”, Jenkinson’s family thanked Brianna‘s mother Esther Ghey for her “incredible selflessness and empathy towards our family”.
In a statement to the Warrington Guardian, Scarlett Jenkinson’s family said: “All of our thoughts are for Brianna and her family.
“The last 12 months have been beyond our worst nightmares as we have come to realise the brutal truth of Scarlett’s actions.”
The four-week trial heard the pair, who were 15, had a fascination with violence, torture and serial killers, with Jenkinson wanting to keep a part of Brianna’s flesh as a “token”.
Jenkinson was jailed for a minimum term of 22 years, and Ratcliffe 20.
Case was ‘one of the most disturbing cases the CPS have had to deal with’
Speaking outside the court, seniorcrown prosecutor Nicola Wyn Williams said: “At just 16, Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe are convicted killers, responsible for the brutal murder of a vulnerable young girl who thought they were her friends.
“They have been given a life term of imprisonment and have shown no remorse.
“The planning, violence and the age of the killers is beyond belief. The two appear to have had a deadly influence on each other and turned what may have started out as dark fantasies about murder into a reality.
“The messages between the two provided a terrifying insight into the warped desires and fantasies of the two defendants. However, they also provided us with the motivation behind the attack, the plans and then the attempts to cover it up.
“Today’s sentence reflects the brutality of the two killers’ heartless crime – and while it cannot erase the pain of Brianna’s loss, we hope it brings some closure.
“The Crown Prosecution Service would again like to thank Brianna’s family for the courage and dignity they have shown throughout the proceedings, and our thoughts and sympathies remain with them at this difficult time.”
CPS believes killing was transphobic hate crime
The CPS has said it believes Brianna Ghey’s “brutal” and “heartless” murder was a hate crime driven by transphobia.
Speaking outside Manchester Crown Court on Friday, Nicola Wyn Williams, senior crown prosecutor for Mersey Cheshire, said the CPS is “pleased the court has agreed this was a motive”.
She said: “We applied to the judge for an increase in the defendants’ sentences because we believed this killing was a hate crime, motivated in part by hostility towards Brianna because she was transgender.
“We are pleased the court has agreed this was a motive.
Killers made no visible reaction to prison sentences
Jenkinson made no reaction as she was told she must serve more than two decades behind bars.
She sat blinking occasionally as she was addressed by the judge and briefly asked a question of her intermediary, or approved adult, sat beside her in the dock.
Her mother, sat to her right in the public gallery, dabbed tears from her eyes with tissue.
Ratcliffe, also seated and looking directly in front of him, made no visible reaction as he was sentenced.
He was led down to the cells without looking over at his mother, who was sat to the left of the dock.
Police say killers have shown ‘no remorse’ for the pain caused
Following the sentencing, DI Nige Parr said: “This has been a challenging and complex investigation from the very beginning and while I am pleased that the two responsible for Brianna’s brutal and senseless murder have been handed significant sentences, there is no escaping the tragedy in this case.
“Thankfully, Brianna’s family will finally see those responsible for her murder being punished for their part in this shocking crime.
“Jenkinson and Ratcliffe have shown absolutely no remorse for the pain they have caused, refusing to admit responsibility for their actions and selfishly subjected Brianna’s family, and their own families, to the ordeal of a trial.
“I would like to express my sincere condolences to Brianna’s family. They have shown an immense amount of courage and dignity throughout the investigation and the trial, and this has been an incredibly difficult experience for them. I hope that they can now in some way start to rebuild their lives after going through so much pain and grief.”
Fundraiser for Brianna Ghey passes £50,000
A fundraiser in memory of Brianna Ghey, which is raising money for the Mindfulness in Schools Project, has passed £50,000.
Brianna’s mother, Esther Ghey, said she had “decided to help make a difference to our society to reduce the risk of this happening again to another young person”.
The fundraising page says mindfulness techniques in schools “will allow children to process and deal with negative emotions in a healthy way - preventing mental health problems from developing in later life”.
Killer’s new school kept in dark over her having drugged another pupil
The school to which one of Brianna Ghey’s killers was moved before murdering the 16-year-old was not told their new pupil had already drugged a younger girl with a cannabis sweet.
Teachers were told only that Scarlett Jenkinson had been caught with cannabis edibles and was being given a “second chance”, an investigation has found:
Brianna Ghey’s killer’s new school was not told she had drugged another pupil
Teenager poisoned 13-year-old victim with cannabis sweet just months before murder but she was given ‘second chance’
Killers show no reaction to being jailed
Jenkinson made no reaction as she was told she must serve more than two decades behind bars.
She sat blinking occasionally as she was addressed by the judge and briefly asked a question of her intermediary, or approved adult, seated beside her in the dock.
Her mother, seated to her right in the public gallery, dabbed tears from her eyes with a tissue.
Ratcliffe, also seated and looking directly in front of him, made no visible reaction as he was sentenced.
He was led down to the cells without looking over at his mother, who was seated to the left of the dock.
Teenage girl enjoyed killing Brianna and wanted to kill again, court told
Scarlett Jenkinson had enjoyed the killing, the excitement causing her to stab Brianna Ghey more times and she found the thought of violence sexually arousing, with a desire to kill again, Manchester Crown Court heard.
Her accomplice Eddie Ratcliffe had also expressed transphobia about his victim, Mrs Justice Yip ruled.
The judge said the “exceptionally brutal” murder had elements of both sadism by Jenkinson and transphobic hate on the part of Ratcliffe.
The trial heard Jenkinson and Ratcliffe had a fascination for violence, torture and murder and a thirst for killing.
Jenkinson became obsessed by Brianna
Jenkinson, whose parents are teachers and lives close to the park in Culcheth, had been asked to leave her school, Culcheth High, over giving cannabis-laced gummy sweets to another pupil and joined Brianna’s school, Birchwood High, in October 2022 and quickly became “obsessed” with the transgender girl.
Along with Ratcliffe, from Leigh, whose mother is a skiing instructor and whose father runs his own businesses, she drew up a “kill list” of four other youths they wanted to harm until Brianna had the “misfortune” to be befriended by Jenkinson.
Watch: Hundreds mourned murdered pupil
Hundreds of people gathered to remember Brianna Ghey in Bristol days after she was murdered.
Candlelit vigil for Brianna Ghey held in Bristol to remember schoolgirl
Hundreds of people gathered to remember Brianna Ghey in Bristol on the evening of Tuesday, 14 February. The 16-year-old, who was transgender, was stabbed to death in a park in Cheshire on Saturday. Cheshire Police have said they are pursuing all lines of inquiry, including whether it was a hate crime, following her death. Vigils have been planned across the country to remember the schoolgirl. On Bristol’s College Green, people lit candles to pay their respects to the “much-loved daughter.” Click here to sign up for our newsletters.
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