A pair of 14-year-old boys have been convicted of murdering a schoolgirl of the same age in Dublin.
Ana Kriegel’s naked body was found with a ligature around the neck in a derelict house three days after she went missing on 14 May last year.
Her body showed evidence of about 50 injuries, pathologists concluded the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head and neck. There was also evidence of penetration or attempted penetration of her vagina.
The boys, who were 13 at the time of the killing, were found guilty at Dublin’s Criminal Courts of Justice on Tuesday following at trial. They have not been identified because of their age.
The prosecution alleged one of the teenagers, referred to during the trial as Boy B, had lured Ana from her home to meet the other, Boy A.
Jurors were told Boy A then sexually assaulted and murdered her in a derelict farmhouse in the suburb of Lucan while Boy B watched on.
Extensive forensic evidence, including Ana’s blood on his boots and his semen on her top, linked Boy A to the murder.
Her blood was also found a brick and on a home-made skull mask, gloves and kneepads which Boy B said his friend had worn during the attack.
Ana‘s parents hugged and wept in court after a jury found the teenagers guilty following more than 14 hours of deliberations.
Boy B’s father stormed out of the room, slamming the door, following the verdicts. He returned shortly after, loudly clapping, and said: “An innocent child is going to prison.”
Both boys have been remanded in detention ahead of sentencing of 15 July.
Justice Paul McDermott asked for both boys’ school reports as well as a number of social work reports.
