Mother of four children murdered in Walkden petrol-bomb attack dies
The mother of four children murdered in a petrol-bomb attack has died.
Michelle Pearson, a mother-of-six, suffered severe burns in the attack on her home on Jackson Street, Walkden, Greater Manchester, in December 2017.
In a Facebook post, Michelle Pearson’s mum Sandra confirmed the news:
Michelle had struggled to come to terms with four of her children dying and she had been in hospital ever since the fire.
Earlier this year Michelle managed to raise £1000 for the Wythenshawe burns unit.
The donation was raised by family, friends and well-wishers through a number of fundraising efforts, including a vigil to mark the one year anniversary of the tragedy.
Last September, Michelle was not able to say a final goodbye at her children's funerals as she was still recovering from the injuries she suffered from the blaze.
Hundreds of mourners attended the service for her children who died in the firebomb attack in Jackson Street, Walkden, Greater Manchester.
The children were murdered as they slept in their beds after Zak Bolland, 23, and David Worrall, 26, smashed a kitchen window and threw petrol bombs inside in the dead of night.
Bolland’s bottle "exploded" near the stairs, blocking the only exit to the ground floor and trapping the victims upstairs.
Mrs Pearson woke up screaming "Not the kids! Not my kids!" as flames engulfed the house at 5am on December 11.
She was rescued with her youngest daughter Lia, who died in hospital two days later.
All four "died a terrible death" from smoke inhalation and burns, the trial of the killers heard.
Mrs Pearson’s son Kyle, 17, had been involved in a "petty" feud with Bolland over damage to his £200 car, prompting a series of tit-for-tat attacks.
Bolland and Worrall were given four life sentences for murder after a trial in May and must serve a minimum of 40 and 37 years respectively before parole.
Bolland’s girlfriend Courtney Brierley, 20, was jailed for 21 years for four counts of manslaughter.
In a statement, Detective Superintendent Lewis Hughes, of Greater Manchester Police, said:
Assistant County Fire Officer Leon Parkes, of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said:
Prosecutors will now consider charging those already jailed for the children's murder with Michelle's death.
Our reporter Jennifer Buck has this report: