28/03/2008

Teen Found Guilty Of Goth Murder

A 15-year-old boy has been found guilty of the murder of a young woman who was killed for dressing like a Goth.

Brendan Harris was found guilty of the murder of Sophie Lancaster, 20, in Stubbylee Park in Bacup, Lancashire, last August.

Following the verdict at Preston Crown Court, Judge Anthony Russell QC lifted an order banning identification of Harris and 16-year-old Ryan Herbert, who had already pleaded guilty to murder earlier.

Both Harris and Herbert had pleaded guilty to assaulting Sophie's boyfriend Robert Maltby, 21, who survived the attack.

Three other males, two aged 17 and one aged 16, also pleaded guilty to the assault charge. They still cannot be named.

The judge said that Harris and Herbert would be sentenced to life, but that the tariffs would be set on April 28 after reading pre-sentence reports.

Sophie and Robert were attacked by a gang in the park on August 10 last year. The court heard how they were targeted by a gang of teenagers simply because they looked different.

Robert was attacked first and the court heard how the gang then turned on Sophie as she pleaded with them to stop the attack.

Paramedics said that the assault was one of the worst they had ever seen and the court heard how the facial injuries suffered by the couple were so severe that initially they unable to determine if they male or female.

Sophie died in hospital two weeks after the attack.

(KMcA/JM)


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