A mum has opened up on the last conversation she had with her "happy-go-lucky" son Jack Woodley just minutes before he was brutally attacked and murdered by a gang of youths.
Zoe McGill said she had spoken to Jack on the day of his death when he asked her for more money to go on "one more ride" as he enjoyed a day out at Houghton Feast, in Houghton-le-Spring, last year with his girlfriend. Although Jack did get to go on one last ride, his short life ended that night at the hands of 10 killer teenagers who kicked, punched, and stabbed him.
And as the teenagers are sentenced for his brutal murder at Newcastle Crown Court, Jack's mum opened up on their last conversation saying he sounded "really happy". But after she was told that Jack was attacked, his mum said she knew instantly something was "really wrong" and told her husband that she knew "Jack was dead".
Read more: Jack Woodley murder sentence: The lives of 10 teen killers revealed
She said: "We spoke at around 8.30am and Jack was always on the want for money off mam and he was asking for one more ride, some money for the last ride and he was saying: 'Please mam, please.' So I agreed to give him some more money for another ride which he did get to go on.
"He seemed really happy on the phone he was saying: 'Mam it's class', but Jack always did like rides, he loved rides, lights, things like that. So I sent him the money and the next thing I heard was a message and I remember, in shock, I hit my husband and then just dived up and ran for the door.
"I think it was just the shock of it. Immediately I knew something was really wrong. I said to my husband: 'We need to go, we need to go, Jack's dead I know he is' and he said: 'You don't know that stop saying it' and he was basically trying to get me calm."
Jack's family rushed to the hospital to be by his bedside but his mum broke down as she described seeing him for the first time after being treated. She said: "We walked into the ICU and it just wasn't my son, it was like looking at someone else. He was bloated from all the treatment he had. We went to hold his hand and we were stopped because he was evidence. So we just had to stand over him and the nurse gave us some gloves and gowns so we could hold his hand and it just seemed like we were waiting forever."
Tragically, Jack from County Durham, passed away during surgery leaving his family and friends heartbroken. Zoe said she was "screaming" when she was told about Jack's death and said she was in shock.
The mum said: "We were told to give him a kiss and say goodbye before they took him down. I remember police being in the corridor waiting for the outcome. When the surgeon came and sat me down he was as emotional as I was and he was just a stranger to Jack. He just kept apologising for not being able to save his life.
"I think we were just numb, I think I remember screaming when the surgeon told me but then I think I was just in shock. The days after were horrific I just remember waking up at home and looking out my bedroom window and I kept saying to myself over and over again that it was just a bad dream and I was just thinking of my son in a morgue.
"We couldn't go see him. If we went to see him we had to have police officers there because he was classed as evidence. Things you would never expect to go through as a parent. I was unable to even process some of it. We weren't able to even take it in."
On Friday, the 10 teens responsible for Jack's murder were sentenced to serve over 124 years in detention by Judge Rodney Jameson QC.
The youth who inflicted the fatal stab wound was sentenced to serve a minimum term of 17 years before he is eligible for release.
The second teen, who is 16-years-old, was sentenced to serve a minimum term of 13 and a half years.
The third teen, 15, was sentenced to a minimum term of 15 years.
The fourth teen was sentenced to serve a minimum of 15 years.
The youngest of the defendants, a 15-year-old, was sentenced to a minimum of eight years.
The sixth teen, also 15-years-old was sentenced to serve a minimum of 13 years.
The seventh teen, 15, must serve a minimum of 10 years.
The eighth teen, who is 16-years-old, must serve a minimum of 11 years.
The ninth youth, 16, must serve a minimum of 11 years.
The tenth teen, the second 18-year-old, must serve a minimum of 11 years.
Read next:
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Jack Woodley murder: Ten teenagers jailed for 124 years after brutal gang attack
- Jack Woodley murder: One teen killer had traits of autism and ADHD identified after conviction
- "We heard our son's heart beat for the last time": Jack Woodley's mum reveals agony to judge set to sentence teen killers
- Jack Woodley stabbing: Nine teens submit appeals against murder convictions
