A teenager has been found guilty of stabbing a 15-year-old girl to death in the street after following her for 45 minutes.
Holly Newton was left with 36 knife injuries after an attack in the Priestpopple area of Hexham, Northumberland, in January last year.
A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named because of his age, admitted a charge of manslaughter but denied murder claiming his mind went blank that day and he had only intended to take his own life.
A 16-year-old boy who was with Holly at the time of the attack tried to help her and was also stabbed.
The 17-year-old, who was also found guilty of wounding with intent at Newcastle Crown Court, claimed he couldn’t remember stabbing Holly, or the boy who came to her aid.
Holly was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, in Newcastle, after the attack but could not be saved.
The 16-year-old boy, who was also taken to hospital, suffered injuries to his shoulder, arm, and thigh which needed surgery.
Holly’s mother had been so concerned that day that she contacted police about the defendant, who was known to her daughter. It was agreed Holly should not leave school if the youth was outside, jurors were told.
For around 45 minutes, he followed Holly around the town centre as she visited shops with friends before attacking her.
Holly had told a friend just hours before the stabbing that the youth was “basically stalking her”, jurors heard.
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When Holly and the 16-year-old boy she was with went into a pizza shop, the defendant waited outside at a bus stop, where he asked to speak to her.
In just over a minute, the defendant inflicted 36 knife wounds on Holly, stabbing her 12 times, slashing her 19 times, and causing five “defensive” injuries, jurors heard.
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He will be sentenced during a two-day hearing at the same court on 31 October.
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