When Brianna Ghey's mother spoke to her 16-year-old daughter, before she headed off to a park, she could not in her worst nightmares have imagined that it would be their last conversation.
Brianna visited the picturesque village of Culcheth and made her way to Culcheth Linear Park - an extremely popular route with dog walkers and families alike. The park, which is less than two miles from Cheshire's border with Greater Manchester, is where the schoolgirl spent her last moments on a crispy but sunny Saturday afternoon, before she was killed in what police describe as a 'targeted attack'.
Today (Sunday February 12) it was a much different scene from what locals are used to, as the entrance was taped off amid a huge emergency service response. Crime scene investigators were in the park, along with police dogs, and search teams, who were looking under hedges and cars.
READ MORE : Man left with 'life threatening injuries' following stabbing in brawl involving 'Rambo hunting knife'
Their enquiries led to a boy and a girl, both 15, being arrested on suspicion of murder this evening. The teenagers, who are from the local area, are in custody for questioning.
A pair of cyclists who had travelled from Tyldesley and who ride to Culcheth 'quite often' spotted the cordon, before police had to send them back on their way. One of them said: "It’s a sad thing to see, especially to hear it’s a young girl. It’s such a lovely area as well."
It seems that quite a few people regularly travel from across the Wigan and Warrington border to visit the park, with another lady from Leigh adding: "We're just shocked. We're really quite taken aback. It's a lovely place to be and this is a quiet community where people keep themselves to themselves."
One woman seemed to be holding back tears as she handed a bouquet of flowers to an officer at the scene. She did not wish to speak other than to comment: "It's just very sad."
Another local said: "Seeing such a terrible incident take place in the place you spent hours as a child playing and growing up is quite upsetting and shocking. As children, me and my brothers would spend hours playing in the park, in all weathers."
Before police confirmed the details of Brianna's death, social media had rife with rumours about what had happened - with the Ministry of Justice even coming out to publicly deny that a prisoner had escaped from nearby HMP Risley, after it was suggested that the suspect was linked to the jail. It was a similar case in the village throughout Sunday morning as residents repeated things they had seen online.
One 'rumour' that did turn out to be true was that Brianna had been stabbed, with officers confirming that she had multiple wounds. Speaking to the press, Detective Chief Superintendent Mike Evans said: "We don’t know what the weapon used to kill Brianna is at the moment and searches are still ongoing. We’re just focused on bringing Brianna’s killer or killers to justice."
Addressing the social media rumours, he added: "Speculation doesn’t help, it is natural but we’d just like to reassure the community that we’ve got lots of officers in the area, we’re following every line of enquiry that we’ve got and we continue to pursue them.
"It’s a well known dog walking spot, we know it’s popular with families, and it was a nice day yesterday, so I’d ask for anyone in the area between 1.30pm and 4pm to contact us."
Det Ch Supt Evans described the incident as an 'isolated' attack and gave descriptions of "two key people" that detectives wish to speak to in connection to the incident. He said: "At this this time we're treating it as a targeted attack against Brianna. We don't believe there's any risk to the community but we are keeping an open mind.
"In particular we are keen to speak to two people that were seen in the park where Brianna’s body was found who have been described as a white man and woman, in their late teens or early twenties, both with dark curly hair. The man was wearing a longish dark hooded coat and the woman had a distinctive red or purple black checked blanket-style coat and a long flowing skirt, dress or trousers."
Police are continuing with their enquiries following the two arrests. In a further statement issued tonight, Det Ch Supt Evans added: "At this time, there is no evidence to suggest that the circumstances surrounding Brianna’s death are hate related."
Information can be reported online via the Cheshire Police website or by calling 101, quoting IML 1476832. Information can also be reported anonymously, via Crimestoppers, on 0800 555 111.
Read more of today's top stories here
READ NEXT:
