Teenage boy charged with murder of Jodie Chesney

A 17-YEAR-OLD boy has been charged with the murder of Jodie Chesney, the Girl Scout stabbed to death in an east London park earlier this year.

The teenage suspect, who is being held in custody, was arrested in connection with her death last Friday.

He was charged with murder and possession of a stun gun yesterday.

Jodie’s death sparked a national outcry over knife crime and detectives are continuing to investigate the stabbing on March 1.

Jodie was playing music with friends near a children’s playground at Harold Hill, Romford, when she was knifed from behind in a seemingly motiveless attack. She was pronounced dead just over an hour after officers were called at about 9.25pm.

A post-mortem examination gave the cause of the girl’s death as trauma and haemorrhage. The boy is the fourth person to be charged in connection with her murder. Two men and a boy have already been charged.

Manuel Petrovic, 20, and Svenson Ong-a-kwie, 18, both from Romford, and a 16-year-old are to face trial at the Old Bailey in September.

A 50-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman are also under investigation on suspicion of assisting an offender in connection with the death.

They were arrested in March but have since been released on bail.

The 17-year-old suspect is due to appear at Barkingside magistrates’ court today.

♦ A 23-year-old man has been taken to hospital following a double stabbing in Mile End, east London, at around 4.30pm yesterday. His condition is described as life-threatening. The second victim also needed treatment, but he was less seriously injured, said police.