A teenage boy searched online, “What happens if you kill?” just minutes after a nine-year-old girl was fatally stabbed, a court heard. The case is now being examined in detail, and what jurors were told paints a deeply upsetting picture.
Aria Thorpe died from a single stab wound. The injury, the court was told, “went into her chest and penetrated her heart.” It happened at an address in a seaside resort last December. The moment was sudden, but the impact was devastating.
According to what was shared in court, the boy, who was 15 at the time, left the scene and walked to a nearby railway station. There, he spoke to a group of young people. His words were direct and shocking.
“‘You’ll see it on the news later’,” he told them.
At first, he tried to explain it as an accident. “‘I was playing around with a knife. (She) walked into the knife. I accidentally stabbed her with a really big knife.’” But his tone and behavior raised concern.
To someone he knew in the group, he said, “‘Yo (name) I’m a murderer. I accidentally killed someone.’”
One of the children later told police what happened next. The boy asked to use a phone. Then he said, “‘I’m done for. Why have I done this?’” It was a moment that showed panic and confusion, right after what had happened.
The court also heard that his phone had been taken away earlier that same day. He described it as something that gave him “freedom.” Prosecutor Ray Tully KC explained that the boy was a heavy phone user, like many young people today.
Police later checked his phone activity. They found that he had slept no more than three-and-a-half hours the night before. That detail was shared as part of building a picture of his state at the time.
Back at the house, Aria’s body was discovered by a family friend. Emergency services were called right away, but it was already too late.
The boy’s version of events stayed mostly the same. He claimed he and Aria were “playfighting.” He said he “jabbed” the knife toward her, expecting her to move away. Instead, he said, she came toward him and was fatally injured.
Prosecutor Ray Tully KC told the jury, “He admits that he had hold of the knife in his hand at the time the fatal wound occurred.” He added that the boy said he expected Aria to flinch, but she didn’t.
Even after that, the boy continued to tell others it was an accident. He said Aria had “impaled” herself on the knife. But the situation quickly escalated once others realized what he was saying.
While he was still at the station, one of the young people contacted police. Officers responded fast. The boy was found sitting on the floor of a train carriage, waiting for it to leave.
When he spoke to detectives, he gave a prepared statement. He said, “‘I grabbed a knife and stabbed her in the chest. I didn’t use a lot of force, but it was a big knife. I don’t know why I did it, it just happened.’”
He continued, “‘I walked over and stabbed her. She fell to the floor. I left and went to the train station to get a train and to get away.’”
The case has been described in court as “desperately sad and upsetting.” It is now up to the jury to decide what really happened and whether the act was intentional or not.
The teenager has denied both murder and manslaughter charges. The trial is still going on.
