Seven-year-old girl was stabbed to death in front of parents in park

The parents of a seven-yearold girl witnessed her being stabbed to death in a random attack by a stranger in a public park, police have said.

The suspect, a 30-year-old woman, was detained under the Mental Health Act yesterday following the incident in Queen’s Park, Bolton, at around 2.30pm on Sunday.

Assistant Chief Constable Rush Jackson, of Greater Manchester Police (GMP), said: “It is hard to describe how terrible this incident was.

“The attack happened in front of the parents of this little girl, who had taken her out yesterday afternoon to enjoy the spring sun and play in the park.

“Having seen this horrendous attack, a member of the public bravely chased after the woman and detained her until police arrived and arrested her.

“I would like to thank him for his actions which enabled us to quickly arrest her and prevent anything else from happening.

“The woman arrested yesterday at the scene of the attack on the little girl in Bolton has now been detained under the Mental Health Act.

“We have informed the family of the woman’s detention.

“They are understandably distraught over what happened yesterday and we will continue to support them with family liaison officers in the coming months.”

Mr Jackson added: “I want to stress that this is not an end to the criminal investigation.

“We will consider the evidence and consult with the Crown Prosecution Service and, if appropriate, we will be seeking criminal charges.”