'They are pure evil': Father of Brianna Ghey tells court he'll never come to terms with her murder

The father of schoolgirl Brianna Ghey, who was murdered by two teenagers in Warrington, has told a court her killers are "pure evil".

Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe carried out a "frenzied and ferocious" attack on the 16-year-old in Culcheth's Linear Park in February 2023.

On Friday, the pair were sentenced to life in prison - Jenkinson to a minimum of 22 years, and Ratcliffe to a minimum of 20.

Reading a victim impact statement during the sentencing hearing, Brianna's father Peter Spooner said he would never get over the death of his daughter.

He said being the father of a transgender child had been "a difficult thing to deal with", but he had been "proud to gain another beautiful daughter".

He said: "We were forming a new relationship and these two murderers have stolen that from us both.

"I hate how Brianna's life has been brutally taken away from her and she has been deprived of the life she wanted to live.

"She never had the chance to sit her exams or go on to further education.

"Now my world has been torn apart. Justice may have been done with the guilty verdicts, but no amount of time spent in prison will be enough for these monsters.

"I cannot call them children as that makes them sound naive or vulnerable which they are not - they are pure evil, Brianna was the vulnerable one."

Full impact statement from Brianna's father, Peter Spooner:

"As Brianna’s Father, it is impossible to put into words how the murder of my child has affected me. I have been deprived of so many memories and time with her.

"Being a father of a transgender child was a difficult thing to deal with. Our memories are engraved on my heart. [Brianna's] decision to transition was such a brave and confident thing to do.

"Even though I grieved the son I lost, I was proud to gain another beautiful daughter. Her appearance changed as she blossomed into a lovely young girl, her eyes were the same, she had my eyes when I looked at her.

"We were forming a new relationship and these two murderers have stolen that from us both. I hate how Brianna’s life has been brutally taken away from her and she has been deprived of the life she wanted to live. She never had the chance to sit her exams or go onto further education.

"Now my world has been torn apart, justice may have been done with the guilty verdicts, but no amount of time spent in prison will be enough for these monsters.

"I cannot call them children as that makes them sound naïve or vulnerable which they are not, they are pure evil, Brianna was the vulnerable one.

"They were determined to kill and never gave up until they had blood on their hands, my Brianna’s blood.

"Not an ounce of remorse has been shown from these murderers, putting myself and my family through this awful trial having to hear the details about how Brianna suffered. It is unforgivable.

"The impact of Brianna’s death has affected our whole family. Personally, this has affected me in many ways. I’ve been signed off work with personal stress until after the sentencing but I will never come to terms with the loss of my daughter.

"My employer has been very understanding throughout. Since the trial finished, I’ve felt in a rut and struggle some days to focus on things.

"It’s hard moving forward knowing I will never see my child again. Every day something will remind me of what Brianna went through that day in February 2023.

"Something as simple as taking the dog for a walk in a wooded area or seeing something on TV can trigger those emotions.

"I wish I wasn’t standing here reading this statement today, but if I wasn’t then there would have been another father stood here in my shoes, another child from their list would have been brutally murdered and I wouldn’t wish this terror and pain onto another person."

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