Teen says he aimed to 'scare' girl before stabbing

A teenage boy accused of murdering a nine-year-old girl has told a jury he aimed to "scare" her by waving a knife around moments before she was fatally injured.

The 16-year-old defendant, who cannot be identified due to his age, denies the murder and manslaughter of Aria Thorpe at her home in Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, on 15 December last year.

During the fifth day of his trial at Bristol Crown Court, the teenager became emotional as he gave evidence and described the moment Aria was injured.

"I was going to try and make her flinch, so I leaned forward like I was fencing," he told the court.

Giving evidence, the boy admitted he had the knife and was "waving" it around.

He demonstrated the action with a pen in court.

He said Aria "had a smile on her face" while he waved the knife around and then "took a step forward" before she "put her hand to her chest" and "collapsed on the floor".

"The knife went into her and then I pulled it out," he said.

"I didn't know what to do."

The court previously heard the defendant's mother had confiscated his phone after he was expelled from school for disruptive behaviour. He said that without his phone, he was unable to call 999.

He told the court he thought Aria had died, but left the scene and headed to Worle Railway Station because he got "scared" and "panicked".

"I was thinking that I've got to get away," he said.

"I didn't know what to do, I didn't know what was going to happen."

He added: "I was scared, really anxious, I don't know how to explain it."

The defendant was arrested on a train waiting to depart the station shortly after he spoke to a group of youths on the platform about the alleged stabbing.

He said he felt "horrible" when he was arrested and did not get much sleep that night because of "what had happened".

The trial continues.

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