BREAKING ILE NEWS YA 16 -YEARS -OLD GIRL WHO WAS STABBED ON A BUS .22 YEAR-OLD PHILLIP SIMELANE WILL BE CHARGED WITH HER MURDER"

Tragic: Christina Edkins, 16, was in her uniform on the top deck of the bus in Birmingham city centre when she was stabbed in the chest by a man"

 

A man is to be charged with the murder of a 16-year-old girl who was stabbed on a bus as she travelled to school.
West Midlands Police said they are charging 22-year-old Phillip Simelane, from Walsall, with killing Christina Edkins.
The force said he will be formally charged with murder in due course.
It comes as Christina's parents spoke publicly for the first time today about the death of their daughter.
They said their world had been torn apart by the loss of their 'beautiful princess'.

Jason and Kathleen Edkins said: 'We are heartbroken by the loss of our beautiful princess, Christina, and it's hard to find words to describe the pain we're all feeling.
'Her family and friends will remember her as an amazing individual with her whole life ahead of her…a life that was tragically cut short on that Thursday morning. Our lives will never be the same again.
'We are truly overwhelmed by the kindness that's been shown by friends and neighbours, people who knew Christina well and also those who never got the chance to meet her.'
The family said Christina was studying hard for her exams, looking forward to her school prom and was 'just like most 16-year-olds'.
Miss Edkins died from a single stab wound to the chest when she was stabbed on the top deck of a Birmingham bus as she was heading to school.
CCTV footage showed a suspect standing with his back to the driver and his hands on the door handles, calmly waiting to make his escape just seconds after killing Christina.

The suspect was believed to have used a series of buses in the area, possibly while still armed, before returning to the scene.
A few hours after the attack, police arrested a man 100 yards from where the stabbing took place.
Police released an image of the suspect, holding a white bag and wearing a distinctive black hooded top with a tiger motif on the back, was taken on a No 9 bus in Birmingham city centre on Thursday morning.

'SHE WAS OUR PRINCESS' : PARENTS MOVING TRIBUTE TO DAUGHTER

Well loved: Jason and Kathleen Edkins paid a moving tribute to their 'bubbly, beautiful and intelligent' daughter"

The parents of Christina Edkins today spoke publicly for the first time about the death of their daughter.
Jason and Kathleen Edkins paid a moving tribute to their 'bubbly, beautiful and intelligent' daughter. It comes after they welcomed the decision by police to charge Phillip Simelane with killing their daughter.
Here is the tribute in full:
'We are heartbroken by the loss of our beautiful princess, Christina, and it's hard to find words to describe the pain we're all feeling.
'Her family and friends will remember her as an amazing individual with her whole life ahead of her…a life that was tragically cut short on that Thursday morning. Our lives will never be the same again.
'We are truly overwhelmed by the kindness that's been shown by friends and neighbours, people who knew Christina well and also those who never got the chance to meet her.'
The family said Christina was studying hard for her exams, looking forward to her school prom and was 'just like most 16-year-olds'.
They said: 'We'd bought Christina"s prom dress the week before and recall the day she tried it on…she looked like a princess. She was our Princess. Christina was studying extremely hard for her exams and weighing-up which college to attend.
'In many ways she was like most 16-year-olds: worried about her appearance, what fake tan to wear, how her hair and nails looked and about "hot boys" as Christina would call them!
'We would like to thank everyone for their kind words, flowers, teddies, balloons and candles…the support has been fantastic and shows what good, kind people there are in this world. We'd like to thank West Bromwich Albion for their half time tribute at the weekend and to the fans for their heartfelt applause which was very emotional.
'Finally we'd like to thank West Midlands Police for all the help and support they've given us through this difficult and distressing time. We're relieved to hear a man will soon be charged and, hopefully, we can soon get justice for Christina.'
'We've heard talk of protests in Christina's name, clamouring for swift justice. But as a family we'd urge people to remain calm, be patient and let the legal process take its course.'
They added: 'Our world has been torn apart by the loss of our beautiful princess.'

The schoolgirl, who had previously tweeted fears about being followed by a man on a bus, had been sitting on the top deck in front of the knifeman, who approached her slowly from behind without speaking, stabbed her suddenly in the chest and ‘casually’ walked away.
Only one other person was upstairs – a schoolboy who heard her screams and rushed to help. Passengers downstairs also heard her shouts.
Some have since spoken of fearing for their lives as the knifeman waited to get off.

Christina, who was wearing school uniform and was due to sit an exam that day, had boarded the bus just after 7.30am on Thursday near her home in the city centre.

Tributes: Friends lay floral tributes near to where Miss Edkins died. Christina, who recently turned 16, had also told friends she hated travelling on public transport, saying she could not wait for her next birthday when she could start to drive"

Respects: As police continued to question their 22-year-old suspect, friends and strangers visited the scene to lay flowers"

She walked upstairs, taking her seat in front of the man who would kill her minutes later as she made her way to Leasowes Community College in Halesowen, about five miles away.
Speaking today, West Midlands Police Detective Superintendent Rich Baker, said: "This was a horrific, random attack and one that's understandably shocked many people I'm pleased to announce we now have authority to charge the suspect with murder.
"I'd like to thanks Christina's family for their continued support and patience during our enquiry. Everyone wants to see justice for Christina and her family and from day one we've been determined to help deliver that justice for them."
The attack has been captured on CCTV. The officer said he believed Christina did not initially realise what had happened to her, before suddenly screaming out.
A teenage boy, aged about 16 and from a different school, was sitting at the back of the bus and ran downstairs to tell the driver to call 999.

Distraught: A steady stream of mourners visited the scene where Christina died"

Shrine: By yesterday afternoon, the pile of flowers and tributes had grown into a shrine to the schoolgirl"

‘He was sitting behind the attacker, on the back seat. He was in his own world. She has clearly called for help,’ Mr Baker added.
A mother of two came face to face with the killer as he waited to get off.
Stephanie Bent would later rush upstairs and try desperately to revive Christina with two other women but had to wait for a few awful moments, fearing for her own life, as the killer stood beside her by the bus doors before escaping.
‘I knew what he had done and he was stood next to me when he was getting off,’ she wrote on Facebook. ‘All I could think of was, I hope he gets off this stop so I can go upstairs and help the girl.’
Yesterday, schoolfriends left floral tributes to Christina near the scene of her death. Christina’s parents Jason, 42, and Kathleen, 47, were said to be ‘absolutely devastated’.
Her brother Ryan, 18, thanked friends for their support and wrote on Twitter that he ‘would do anything’ to see her again. ‘It is mad to think I will never see you again,’ he added. ‘I love you.’

'Sweet dreams': Many of the bouquets left at the scene contained messages to the schoolgirl

'In loving memory': The teenager, who wanted to become a nurse, was killed as she travelled to school to sit a mock GCSE exam, friends said"

Four weeks before her death, Christina had written on Twitter: ‘This man is worrying me on the bus keeps getting up and walking up and down stairs, and sitting in different places.’
Police, who are yet to recover the knife, believe the attack was random.
The man arrested on suspicion of fatally stabbing Christina was sectioned under the Mental Health Act.
Police said experts had deemed him unfit to be interviewed by them any further.

Rush-hour horror: Police and paramedics at the scene in Hagley Road, Birmingham, where the schoolgirl was stabbed to death on a bus"