A killer schoolboy who mowed down a seven-year-old girl just metres away from her home as he rode a stolen motorbike at more than 50mph has been locked up. Young Katniss Seleznev asked her mother “Mummy can I go out to play?” just moments before she was horrifically ‘propelled’ into the air as a balaclava-clad underage driver hurtled into her.
She had just left her Walsall home to play on her three-wheel pink scooter with her twin brother and older sister during the school summer break when she suffered catastrophic injuries. The child was left for dead in the street ‘like an animal’ as her 14-year-old killer callously escaped at speed.
He then ditched the bike in bushes before it was later set alight. Shocked members of the public ran to help the wounded child, with one have-a-go-hero desperately administering CPR at the roadside.
READ MORE: ‘Real reason’ Prince Harry didn’t see King Charles during recent UK trip
Sign up to the BirminghamLive newsletter here to get the latest updates on the biggest and breaking stories.
She was rushed to hospital but could not be saved. The boy – who cannot be named for legal reasons because of his age – admitted causing death by dangerous driving.
Today (Wednesday, May 22), he was detained for five years and four months. Sentencing at Wolverhampton Crown Court, Judge Michael Chambers KC described the killing as a ‘grave case’ of the ‘utmost seriousness’.
He said: “Katniss died as a result of you deliberately riding a 125cc motorcycle on to the wrong side of a residential street towards an oncoming car and then driving so fast that you killed Katniss, who was out with her brother and sister, riding quite properly on the street by her home. This was, as I know you now appreciate, an appalling offence, aggravated by the fact that you did not even stop, but rode off.”
He added: “By reason of your age, obviously, you should not have been driving at all – not only did you have no licence, you were not insured.” There was ‘no suggestion’ the boy applied the brakes as he collided with Katniss, the judge said.
Judge Chambers added: “She obviously had no chance.” The court heard how Katniss was killed in Turnstone Road, Blakenall, just after 7pm on July 27 last year.
The area is a ‘quiet and pleasant estate’ where children often play on the street, prosecutor Robert Price said. Katniss left her home – on the corner of nearby Wagtail Road – before turning right into Turnstone Road.
Footage from CCTV captured the unsuspecting child gliding along the street on her scooter as she followed behind her siblings in the road. The boy was riding a Suzuki GSX-S125 – reported stolen to police on June 27 – in the opposite direction.
A chilling scream could then be heard on the recording played to the court. A couple, who live close to Katniss’ family, told police how they were driving to Asda in the lead-up to the fatal collision.
They spotted a number of youngsters playing in the street on bikes and scooters, which was a ‘regular occurrence’. The defendant ‘suddenly’ appeared in front of them, travelling ‘very fast’ in the opposite direction.
He was donning a balaclava and had his hood up as he drove on the ‘wrong side of the road’. The couple initially thought the bike was riding ‘deliberately at them’.
They watched in their rearview mirror as the boy moved past them before crashing into Katniss ‘at full speed’. The girl was thrown into the air before landing 20 metres away, the court heard.
Members of the public rushed to the young girl’s aid as a boy cradled Katniss in his arms. A woman trained in first aid performed CPR on the youngster before paramedics arrived and took her to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
But she could not be saved and was pronounced dead 10 minutes after arrival. The boy fled the scene, dumping the bike among trees less than two miles away.
The youth was named by two children and identified through ‘clothing matches’ after police gathered CCTV footage. He was arrested at 9.45pm that same day, Mr Price said.
The bike was spotted by a member of the public hidden in bushes at about 10.30pm. It was discovered burnt out in woodland the next day.
The motorcycle was so badly damaged that ‘meaningful examination’ of it could not be carried out – but investigators believe there were no mechanical defects which would have prevented the brakes from working. One man described to police how he had seen the same motorbike in the area before the fatal crash and said it was ‘very often’ ridden ‘quickly around the estate’.
An investigation established the boy had been riding between 48mph and 52mph in a 30mph zone before the impact. The court heard how the boy was subject to a six-month referral order at the time of the offence.
It was handed to him a month before he killed Katniss for taking a vehicle without consent, driving otherwise in accordance with a licence and driving without insurance. He was with others when he drove a Vauxhall Corsa from the owner’s home, Mr Price said.
The boy was also handed a youth conditional caution in May last year for having a bladed article in a public place. Robert Cowley, defending, said the boy experienced ‘difficulties’ in the early stages of his life and had an ‘unstable upbringing’.
His grandmother offered to take him in but he would ‘go out at night’ and ‘smoke cannabis’, the court was told. The boy was described by witnesses as being ‘very upset’ in the aftermath of the smash.
Judge Chambers also handed the boy – who is now aged 15 – a driving ban of seven years and eight months
William Turner is a seasoned U.K. correspondent with a deep understanding of domestic affairs. With a passion for British politics and culture, he provides insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage of events within the United Kingdom.
