A 15-year-old youth is currently on trial accused of attempted murder following the incident on Whitefield Drive in Kirkby
19:17, 16 Oct 2025Updated 19:37, 16 Oct 2025
Police at the scene on Whitefield Drive in Kirkby(Image: Liverpool Echo)
A man ran into a pub and shouted “two kids have been stabbed outside” after a 15-year-old boy was knifed 11 times. The teenager’s girlfriend, aged 14, was also stabbed in the chest during the incident near to the Johnny Todd pub on Whitefield Drive in Kirkby.
Another 15-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is currently on trial at Liverpool Crown Court accused of charges included attempted murder. The altercation, on the evening of April 30 this year, was said to have come in retaliation for an earlier confrontation, which led to one of the defendant’s friends suffering a head injury after being struck with a metal pole.
Arthur Gibson, prosecuting, read a series of statements from witnesses to the stabbing to the jury this afternoon, Thursday. Michael Pugh, the licensee of the Johnny Todd, said in his account: “At approximately half past eight, a member of the public, who I don’t know, entered the pub and stated ‘two kids have been stabbed outside the pub’.
“I’ve reacted by grabbing the first aid pack and the stab pack that the pub has behind the bar for emergencies. I’ve seen a young female, who I’ve seen being helped by Paula Pierce, the bar manager.
“I’ve seen a young male being helped by an old man, who I don’t know. I’ve run to the young male, who had towels and jackets pressed to his side. I checked the back of the male and noticed three puncture wounds. I told the old gentleman to keep pressure on the dressings.
“There was blood dripping onto my leg. It was coming from his arm. I noticed three stab wounds. I dressed the young male’s arm and maintained pressure onto it.
“I noticed the young man go dead grey and pale, and he tried to go to sleep. I kept trying to talk to him to keep him responsive. I reassured him, ‘you’re safe, you’re in shock, you’re not going anywhere’.”
Mr Pugh also reported he asked the boy who had stabbed him, to which he replied “I’m no grass”. Ms Pierce said in her own statement that she was walking along Whitefield Drive when she saw an “altercation” outside the Go Local Extra convenience store and shouts of: “Help, help.”
She recalled: “I saw a group of five people, youths, shouting and screaming. I heard a female shouting ‘get off him’. Two people were lying on the floor. I knew straight away they’d been stabbed. The blood was everywhere.”
Another man who came to the boy’s aid, Dennis McKee, had meanwhile walked to the same shop with his granddaughter and dog, leaving both outside as he entered the store. But, while browsing the aisles, he said: “I heard a sound that I recognised as a girl screaming. Soon after, I heard a lad screaming. I could see a lad on the floor and a person standing over the male, striking him.
“My first thought was to get to my granddaughter. He was crying out, ‘I’m dying, I can’t see. I kept talking to him, telling him help was on the way.”
Paramedic Tilly Cowes added in her statement: “The boy stated that he would usually carry a knife before he got with his girlfriend, but wasn’t carrying one today. The boy said it all happened very quickly, and he didn’t get a good look at the male before he ran away.”
Jurors were previously played CCTV footage of the incident, which showed the defendant and a friend approaching the two victims and a second girl at a bus stop on Whitefield Drive. The boy who was stabbed then armed himself with a bottle, which had been discarded on the floor, before saying: “Which one yous? I’ll f***ing bury the both of yous. What? What? What? I’ll stab you to bits. What? What? What?”
However, as he advanced towards the second boy, the defendant was seen to approach him from behind before launching his attack with a knife which he appeared to have produced from his waistband. The video captured a series of screams as the then 14-year-old inflicted the stab wounds and kicked him the head while shouting: “Stupid b****rd. Stupid c***. Stupid little c***. Little t**t.”
A girl was then heard shouting “you’ve stabbed [the female victim’s name]” as the youth and his friend fled on foot. The injured boy was left with a total of 11 stab wounds following the incident, including injuries to his liver and kidney.
The girl was meanwhile stabbed in the lung as she received a single knife blow to her chest. Both required surgery under general anaesthetic as a result of their injuries, but subsequently made good recoveries.
The stabbing was said to have followed an earlier altercation in an area known as the Alt, off nearby Tithe Barn Lane, during which the injured boy was alleged to have thrown a metal pole at a second friend of the defendant. He was taken to hospital for treatment to a cut to his forehead following this initial incident.
The defendant, who has no previous convictions, was arrested at his home address shortly after 9.30pm the same evening. He later told detectives that he had “never met [the other boy] before” when interviewed the following day.
The youth, who is represented by Julian Nutter, denies attempting to murder the boy and wounding with intent against the girl. However, he has pleaded guilty to the lesser charges of wounding with intent in relation to the former complainant and unlawful wounding concerning the latter. The trial, before Judge Neil Flewitt KC, continues.