Ava White: Friend of stabbed girl, 12, tells jury of attack

Ava White died after being stabbed outside a Primark store in Liverpool in November

A teenage girl has told a jury how she saw her 12-year-old friend being stabbed "out of the blue" by a boy with a "cheeky smile".

Ava White died after she was knifed in Liverpool city centre while out with friends on 25 November 2021.

A 16-year-old, who was with Ava and others at the time, described a "disagreement" with a 14-year-old boy, who is on trial accused of her murder.

The boy has pleaded guilty to having an offensive weapon but denies murder.

Pre-recorded evidence from the friend was played at Liverpool Crown Court on Wednesday.

The witness, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said an altercation began between the defendant and his three friends after they were seen filming the group.

She said: "Ava got a bit angry and was just saying, 'Delete the video. You've got my face on there. I don't want to be posted anywhere'."

The court previously heard how footage was later posted on Snapchat.

The 16-year-old described Ava and the defendant arguing, and said: "He pushed her. She went to retaliate. He backed away."

'Heard her scream'

The friend said the defendant, who appeared in court via videolink, had a "cheeky smile".

"Just out of the blue he lifted his arm up and caught her in the neck," she said.

She told the court she saw him pull something from his waistband and "brought it up to Ava's neck".

"It was dead fast," she said.

Floral tributes were left near the scene of Ava's stabbing

The witness said the group had thought the 14-year-old had punched her before he ran away.

"At first she stood there. Then she went pale. She started saying, 'Ow. Ow'," she told the jury.

"She was screaming, 'Ow', and she pulled her coat down and we could see all the blood. We walked by Primark and she collapsed on the floor."

The court was previously shown footage of the moment Ava was stabbed and her alleged killer fleeing the scene.

The teenager said the boy and his friends had called her a "muppet" before the confrontation.

She added: "She was not really an argumentative person, she just did not really like random people saying stuff to her."

The court also heard evidence from an 11-year-old boy who said he saw Ava after she had been hurt.

He said: "I just heard her scream so I ran over. She was breathing heavily. She collapsed on the corner."

The boy also denies an alternative charge of manslaughter.

The trial continues.

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