A murder trial revealed that a nine-year-old girl was stabbed in the heart while playing hula hoop in the street and later collapsed in her mother’s arms. The tragic incident occurred as Lilia Valutyte was outside her mother’s embroidery shop and was fatally injured by Deividas Skebas, 26. Lina Savickiene, Lilia’s mother, described finding her daughter covered in blood with the hoop around her after the stabbing.
During the trial at Lincoln Crown Court, jurors heard part of Mrs. Savickiene’s statement detailing the heartbreaking moment when Lilia collapsed in her arms, growing pale and injured. She immediately sought help, feeling scared and distressed by the situation. Earlier that day, Mrs. Savickiene and Lilia had gone into town for lunch and shopping before allowing Lilia to play outside in the “quiet” street around 5 pm.
According to Christopher Donnellan KC, the prosecutor, Lilia had been in and out of the shop, and her mother checked on her regularly until she heard her daughter cry out for assistance. The tragic incident took place in the town center of Boston, Lincs., on July 28, 2022. Skebas, a Lithuanian national, had recently returned to the UK before the incident occurred.
Skebas denies murdering the girl but admits manslaughter due to diminished responsibility, citing his diagnosis of schizophrenia. The court is tasked with determining Skebas’s mental state at the time of the attack. Defense barrister Andrew Campbell-Tiech KC stated that Skebas, appearing via videolink from Rampton Hospital in Nottinghamshire, was clearly delusional. He emphasized the devastating impact of the tragedy on those involved, expressing doubt about Skebas’s recovery and future prospects.
Following the killing, Skebas claimed to have the power to resurrect Lilia if the police contacted “his controller in Nasa,” indicating his delusional state. The trial heard that Skebas was transferred from prison to Rampton Hospital in December 2022, with the proceedings ongoing.
