Girl, 14, showed no remorse after school stabbing and made threats in detention

A 14-year-old schoolgirl who showed no remorse for the attempted murder of two teachers and a fellow pupil has threatened others while in detention, a court has heard.

The girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, armed herself with her father’s multitool before attacking teachers Fiona Elias and Liz Hopkin, and a pupil, at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman in Ammanford, Carmarthenshire, on April 24 last year.

Following the attack, she told police officers: “That’s one way to be a celebrity.”

Judge Paul Thomas KC sentenced her to 15 years’ detention at Swansea Crown Court on Monday for attempted murder, half of which is to be spent on remand.

Throughout the hearing, the girl appeared to show no emotions, often sketching or making notes.

The judge criticised the girl, saying he believed she had shown no remorse for the incident and had even gone on to threaten someone while in detention.

“I think you enjoyed the reaction and the publicity,” he said.

“I don’t think you are genuinely sorry for what you did; you have said you are, but I don’t think that’s how you really feel.

“You will have been told by those representing you that you will have to be kept in a secure place, as you have been for nearly a year already.

“Even there, where you are at the moment, you are a danger to others, and you have made threats to someone.”

The girl launched her attack outside during the school break, while dozens of pupils were around, with witnesses saying she yelled: “I’m going to f****** kill you.”

As the girl hit Mrs Elias, Ms Hopkin attempted to restrain the girl, and told her colleague to escape.

The pupil wrestled free and stabbed Ms Hopkin to her neck, back and legs.

While other members of staff attempted to calm the girl, she ran off to stab another pupil before finally being restrained.

Following her arrest, the girl made a series of unsolicited comments in the back of a police vehicle, including telling officers: “That’s one way to be a celebrity.”

She said: “I’m pretty sure this is going to be on the news, so more eyes will be looking at me.”

Judge Thomas said: “What you did at school almost a year ago to the day has caused a large number of people a great deal of harm and upset.

“It’s hugely affected many lives, including, of course, your own.

“But Mrs Elias and Ms Hopkin have read out this morning how they have suffered.

“For one reason or another, you weren’t really listening to what they had to say.

“You tried to kill three people, two teachers and another pupil.

“You came to school that day planning to do that, as far as Mrs Elias was concerned.

“I say this was planned – you knew you can’t take a knife, that you had been warned in the past, you nevertheless did so.

“You had it open in your pocket to attack Mrs Elias.”

The judge said he believed the girl had intentionally carried out the attack during the school break, to have the biggest audience possible.

“You wanted as many as possible to see what you planned to do,” he said.

“What you thought of Mrs Elias, what you thought (the other pupil) might have done to you, whatever problems with bullying you had, none of that comes within a million miles of what you did or tried to do.”

Addressing the judge ahead of sentencing, Caroline Rees KC, speaking for the defence, said the defendant’s maturity level was “low”, which was clear from psychiatric reports.

Ms Rees said she was “a very complex young girl”, who had expressed remorse as “best she can”, insisting that the doodling the girl had done throughout the trial was a way to help her cope, and that she was not being “disrespectful”.

The defendant stared down at the desk in front of her as the teachers read their impact statements to the court.

Fiona Elias said her scars and the landmarks she drives past are a constant reminder that “she tried to murder me”, looking at the young girl.

Mrs Elias, who described herself as a workaholic who had been at the school for around 20 years, said she had previously joked she would be buried on the front lawn.

“Never did I believe that joke would come close to reality,” she said.

Mrs Elias told the court the day had begun as usual, but “everything shifted in an instant”.

“I will never forget the moment I saw the tip of the blade – it returns to me often.”

She said she continues to feel guilty over the incident, for the pupils who witnessed it, the parents worried outside the school, and that she ran from Ms Hopkin, who stepped in to save her.

Addressing the defendant, she said: “Whilst your name and face have been anonymised, my story will never be forgotten. I am the victim of an attempted murder in my workplace.”

Ms Elias said she was not “ruling out” meeting the pupil in the future, but first wanted to know she was making progress, describing her as showing “very little remorse” during the trial.

She said she “sincerely hopes” the teenager will engage with the interventions provided and find a “way out of this dark chapter”.

Mrs Elias said: “This is not the end. If you make the right choices, there are opportunities open to you – please take them.”

Ms Hopkin, in her statement to the court, said she was glad she was there to stop the girl’s attack, because a more vulnerable member of staff could have been killed.

“I was in the right place at the right time,” she said.

“It was luck that put me outside on that break. I’m glad that I was there with Fiona and could stop you from killing her.”

She added: “I truly believe that I saved you both that day.”

The girl had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of wounding with intent and a further count of possession of a bladed article on a school premises – but denied attempted murder.

She was found guilty after a week-long trial in February.

Detective chief superintendent Ross Evans of Dyfed-Powys Police said: “While this sentence marks the end of the criminal justice proceedings, and a year since the incident occurred, I understand that for the victims the impact remains ongoing.

“All three suffered physical harm at the hands of the defendant and although wounds can heal with time, it will take considerably longer to recover from the mental trauma her actions caused.

“We have heard from the victim impact statements that they relive the events on April 24 2024 daily, which evidences the profound impact it had on their wellbeing.

“As we now leave the legal proceedings behind us, I wish all the victims well in their recovery.

“For the students who unfortunately witnessed such an act of violence as they went about their day, I sincerely hope they are still able to view their school as a place of safety, and that today’s sentence shows that any attempt to compromise school safety will not be tolerated.”

Michael Cray, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This must have been a terrifying incident for the victims and those who witnessed it.

“The evidence presented by the CPS demonstrated the defendant’s intent when she brandished and used the weapon in a school.

“Thankfully, that intent was not fulfilled. Too often we hear of incidents involving knives ending in the tragic loss of life.

“We would like to acknowledge the bravery of the staff and pupils at Ysgol Dyffryn Aman at this very difficult time.”