Brianna Ghey: Murdered teenager's father says killers 'will never change' as he describes 'complete horror' of her death
Peter Spooner paid tribute to his "beautiful and talented" daughter and said he had changed his opinion on the court's decision to lift reporting restrictions and make her killers' names public.
Saturday 3 February 2024 06:42, UK
The father of the murdered teenager Brianna Ghey has described her killers as "a pair of monsters" who "should be forgotten".
Peter Spooner spoke to Sky News as the 16-year-olds were sentenced for the brutal murder of Brianna in a park in Cheshire last February.
He paid tribute to his "beautiful and talented" daughter as he reflected on the memories her murder had deprived them of making together.
Mr Spooner described how the "brutality" of her murder still left him feeling a sense of "complete and utter horror".
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'Monsters' named for first time
Of her killers, he said: "I have no feelings, there's only anger towards them. If I'm honest I hate them. They're just evil for what they've done and I don't think they'll ever change.
"They'll always be monsters. And that's what they are to me. That's my feelings for them, they're just a pair of monsters."
It comes as the judge named the two teenagers found guilty as Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe for the first time.
The pair were known throughout their trial as girl X and boy Y, but a judge lifted the anonymity order at Manchester Crown Court today.
Brianna, 16, who was transgender, was stabbed to death in a "sustained and violent assault" with a hunting knife in Culcheth near Warrington.
The trial heard her murderers had a "thirst for killing" and a fascination with violence, torture and murder. For weeks they had exchanged messages about killing people and detailed a plan for Brianna's murder.
The pair had drawn up a kill list of four other teenagers in addition to Brianna. At their trial and in police interviews, they blamed each other for the killing.
Read more:
How teenagers 'thirsty for death' plotted murder
Mr Spooner said he had changed his opinion on the court's decision to lift reporting restrictions and make their names public.
"At first, I thought they should be named. Why should they be protected? People should know who they are. Now, I think their names are always going to be tied to Brianna's all the time," he said.
"I think they should just be forgotten about, locked up and not be spoken about again. They're nothing."
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He said the outpouring of love for Brianna in the days after her murder had been a comfort to the family. "She touched the hearts of loads of people," he said.
But he also admitted he was still struggling with the grief and anger over her death.
"I'll never stop thinking about Brianna. She'll live on in my dreams and I just keep thinking about the days we could have had together," he said.
"All I keep thinking about is her on her own in that park with them and what they've done and I really wish I had been there to protect her."