Schizophrenic Albanian woman who stabbed seven-year-old girl to death at random in front of her parents in park on Mother's Day was brought to UK by people smugglers and had been in and out of institutions

A paranoid schizophrenic who stabbed a girl to death in a park on Mother's Day was smuggled into the UK in a lorry and was sectioned for attacking her own family – but was considered well enough to be released into the community.

Eltiona Skana, 30, slashed Emily Jones' neck with a craft knife as the seven-year-old called to her mother as she rode towards her in Queen's Park, Bolton. 

She pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Manchester Crown Court on the grounds of diminished responsibility but was charged with murder.

But on the seventh day of her trial, the jury was told the prosecution were discontinuing the case, with prosecutor Michael Brady QC claiming there was now no realistic prospect of a conviction. The judge subsequently asked the jury to formally return a not guilty verdict at crown court.  

The court has heard how Skana, from Albania, arrived in the UK in 2014 in a lorry and had been having injections of anti-psychotic drugs each month since 2017. 

Dr Victoria Sullivan, who treated Skana at a medium secure mental health unit in Manchester after her arrest, said the defendant's sister, Klestora, told them she had not been taking her anti-psychotic medication before the attack. 

Skana also told medics this medication had caused her mental health to deteriorate and she began taking tablets instead of injections. But when police raided her flat in Bolton after her arrest they found a stash of untaken, anti-psychotic drugs.

From mid-December of last year until March 11, the defendant had no face-to-face contact with her mental health workers, the jury heard. 

In 2017, Skana had stabbed her mother and in another incident attacked her sister and had been admitted to psychiatric hospitals three times – yet was extraordinarily deemed well enough by doctors to be released back into the community.   

Emily Jones was killed by Skana as she was riding her scooter through Queen's Park, Bolton, on Mother's Day

Floral and cuddly toy tributes to the seven-year-old. Following her death, Emily's parents paid tribute to her, describing their only child as the 'light of our lives'

In 2014, her sister had paid an agent to take Skana to the UK, via Italy and France in a lorry.  The refusal was later reversed on appeal and she was given a residency permit to remain in the UK until November 2020 and then leave to remain until 2024.

Skana lived in a terraced house with a fellow Albanian woman in Bolton, where the pair nailed the front door shut, according to neighbours.

Parents pay tribute to 'light of our lives' Emily

After Emily died, her parents released a heart wrenching tribute to their seven-year-old daughter. 

It read: 'Emily was seven-years-old, our only child and the light of our lives.

'She was always full of joy, love and laughter.

'Emily had such a cheeky smile and was beautiful inside and out. She had a heart as big as her smile.

'Emily was never happier than when she was spending time with her family and friends, she was our own little social butterfly.

'Emily had a passion for the outdoors and loved to play any sport, even when she was wearing her pink sparkly dresses.

'We are beyond devastated that this random act of violence means that we will never get to see our beautiful little girl grow up into the wonderful young lady she was showing such promise of becoming.

'It is truly heart breaking to wake up to a world without Emily in it and we cannot comprehend why this has happened.

'We would like to thank the members of the public that assisted us in the park and express our gratitude to the emergency services for doing their upmost to save Emily's life.

'Thank you to everyone for their kind messages of support and for continuing to respect our privacy at this difficult time.'

The court also heard how she was sectioned then detained under the Mental Health Act in 2015 and was admitted to psychiatric hospitals three times but was deemed well enough by doctors to be released into the community.

Skana had been having injections of anti-psychotic drugs each month since 2017,  but had told medics the treatment had caused her mental health to decline.  

She was referred for treatment in March 2015 and was later admitted to the psychiatric unit at the Royal Bolton Hospital after her sister reported that she had grabbed a knife, thinking she would be attacked and wanting to protect herself.     

In 2017 she was hospitalised again after stabbing her mother through the hand and hitting her on the head with an iron, Manchester Crown Court heard.  

In a third incident, she went to the house of a friend armed with a knife without leave and asked to see her daughter. When asked about her haircut, she said 'she cut her hair off rather than cutting off people's heads', the court heard today.   

The Albanian was returned to hospital in handcuffs by police but was never prosecuted over the incidents. Though she regularly refused treatment, Skana was deemed well enough by doctors to be released back into the community.  

The court has heard in harrowing detail how Emily's father thought she had fallen over before realising she had been stabbed, and how he and her mother were forced to watch as paramedics battled to save their daughter's life. 

The prosecution had alleged that Skana planned the killing, buying a knife and selecting a victim in the park and was hiding behind her mental condition. 

After her arrest, Skana told doctors: 'It was premeditated, I waited in a park and picked my victims, I did what I did then tried to run away.'  

Emily had visited Queen's Park in Bolton with her father Mark Jones and mother Sarah Barnes on March 22, this year. 

Michael Brady QC, prosecuting, said Emily, who'd been doing 'laps' on her scooter, spotted her mother in the distance.

She told her father, 'Daddy, daddy. I want to go to mum' and she'd scooted off. 

Emily also called out to her mother, who didn't hear her due to distance between them and the fact she was hearing headphones.

The court heard how Skana was sitting on a bench and armed with a craft knife that was one of a pack of three she'd bought earlier that day from a shop in Bolton town centre. 

Emily had visited Queen's Park in Bolton (pictured, police at the park after the killing) with her father Mark Jones and mother Sarah Barnes on March 22, this year

She stood up as Emily rode past her on a scooter and in 'one movement slit her throat' with the craft knife and thew her to the ground. 

Mr Brady said: 'Emily's path towards her mum took her past the defendant who, as Emily scooted by, grabbed her and in one movement slit her throat with the craft knife and then threw her to the ground.

Skana admitted killing was 'premeditated'

The prosecution alleged that Skana intended to murder Emily while her defence argued the killing was caused by her mental illness.

Following the killing, Skana was detained under the Mental Health Act and admitted to Rampton Hospital.

She told a clinician at the hospital how she heard 'all sorts of voices' and while watching a TV programme she'd laughed 'hysterically' after seeing a child who looked similar to Emily.

Skana believed her mental illness was due to the treatment she'd received since arriving in the UK and told the clinician: 'I was perfectly normal with no mental health problem before coming to the UK'

She later told him: 'I was injected and made into a psychopath' and, 'I was completely fine before I came to this country, I was educated at University and you and the Home Office have done this to me for six years.'

When asked about the killing, she told another member of staff: 'It was premeditated, I waited in a park and picked my victims, I did what I did then tried to run away.'

Skana blamed 'psychosis' for Emily's killing, saying she was 'hearing voices on the day.'

But she'd previously denied hearing voices at the time of the killing when she was initially assessed by a psychiatrist after being arrested.

The court heard that in the months leading up to Emily's killing Skana had been taking a tablet form of anti-psychosis medication, instead of the injections she'd received previously, as it made her 'less paranoid'.

But when one consultant psychiatrist spoke to Skana's sister she admitted the medication was taken 'sporadically.' 

'There had been no interaction between Emily and the defendant. The wound was unsurvivable and Emily died shortly after.'

Emily's father had seen a person on the bench standing over his daughter but assumed Emily had fallen off her scooter and was being helped up.

But he'd then heard a woman shout: 'She's been stabbed'. 

He went to Emily and saw she was bleeding from the neck and tried to comfort her, before a member of the public handed him his shirt to try and stem the flow of blood from Emily's neck.

A woman, believed to be a trained nurse, took over first aid and by this stage Mr Jones was 'frantic'.

Emily's 'inconsolable' mother then arrived and watched as paramedics who'd been called to scene as they battled to try to save their daughter.

But Emily had suffered a cardiac arrested and was airlifted to Salford Royal hospital, where was pronounced dead shortly before 4pm.   

Prior to the attack, which happened around 2.15pm, a woman – believed to be Skana – had been spotted in the park by a witness who described her as as looking 'agitated' and with a 'vacant' look on her face. 

Skana ran off still armed with the knife but at some point placed it in her backpack, where it was later recovered.

Mr Brady said a passer-by, Tony Canty, who been out for a walk with his wife and daughter witnessed Skana 'manhandling' and 'screaming' at Emily and pushing her to the ground. Skana screamed: 'She tried to kill me.'

She then repeated it as she ran past Mr Canty. 

At that stage, Mr Canty 'had no idea how serious the situation was, he hadn't seen a knife and didn't realise that Emily had been fatally wounded,' Mr Brady said.

But he was 'sufficiently' concerned to run after Skana, with his wife shouting after him that she had a knife. He briefly lost sight of Skana but soon caught up with her and either 'barged or pushed' her to the ground.

Skana fell on to her back and Mr Canty was able to detain her until the police arrived. Mr Brady said that as Mr Canty sat on top Skana she started rambling about the 'Home Office, her family and that he had killed 'the girl.'

When Mr Canty telephoned and told them that a young girl had been involved, Skana responded: 'I'm a girl, I'm a child.'

Psychiatric experts had told the jury that she had a history of mental illness, had paranoid schizophrenia and had killed Emily in a psychotic episode. 

Michael Brady QC, prosecuting, had told jurors the main issue was whether Skana's paranoid schizophrenia was the reason behind the killing of Emily or if her illness was simply 'a convenient excuse behind which to hide?' 

The court heard that Dr Crosby, a prosecution instructed psychiatrist, and Dr Whitworth, a psychiatrist for the defence, agreed that at the time Skana was suffering from an 'acute psychotic episode' caused by her 'paranoid schizophrenia'.

But Mr Brady told the jury that Skana had murdered Emily given her 'clear intent'. 

The seven-year-old had been riding to meet her mother when the defendant sprang from a bench, grabbed her and cut her throat with a craft knife she had bought that morning. Pictured, officers at the scene

TIMELINE THAT LED TO HORROR 

August 2014: Eltiona Skana smuggles herself into the UK in lorry, applying for asylum on the grounds that she had been trafficked.

March 2015: She is assessed as suffering from PTSD and referred for medical treatment.

July 2015: Skana is sectioned after her sister reports that she grabbed a knife believing she was being attacked.

2015-2016: Skana fails to return from leave in the community several times and refuses to take tablets, instead receiving injections of anti-psychotic drugs.

Feb 2017: After being allowed to leave hospital, she hits her mother over the head with an iron and threatens her sister and is readmitted. Skana admits to a psychiatrist that her claim to have been trafficked was a lie – but her trial heard this might not have been passed on to immigration authorities.

June 2018: Skana is refused asylum but appeals and is given leave to remain until November 2020.

August 2018: She is released again.

August 2019: Skana complains injections make her ‘more paranoid’ and doctors switch her to pills.

March 11, 2020: A psychiatric nurse visits her for first time since December but has no concerns.

March 22: Skana kills Emily Jones.

He added that Skana was aware of her condition and did not feel responsible for her actions, something she had 'tried to manipulate and play upon'

But Dr Crosby told the court that Skana had a partial defence to murder as she was suffering an abnormality of mental functioning which was likely to have substantially impaired rational judgement and her ability to exhibit self control.

He said she would perceived herself to be 'under threat' and was having a psychotic episode at the time of the killing.

Asked whether Skana could have selected to attack Emily, he said: 'In my opinion it could have been anyone who came into contact with her at that point.

'There is no evidence that Emily Jones was singled out for any particular reason.'

Today, the prosecution barrister told the jury that the Crown Prosecution Service would no longer pursue a murder charge and asked them to find Skana not guilty of that offence.

Speaking to the jury, he said the prosecution had decided that was 'no longer any realistic prospect of conviction' for murder.  

'This is not a decision that has been taken lightly by the Crown,' he said. 'It's a decision taken with care and mindful of the sensitivity of this case.'

He explained that the decision to drop the charge had come following evidence from Dr Saifullah Syed Afghan – a consultant forensic psychiatrist who is treating Skana at Rampton Hospital.

He told the court he had no 'alternative' explanation for her actions on March 22, aside from previous explanations of psychosis brought on by her diagnosed paranoid schizophrenia. 

The jury then found Skana not guilty of murder. The sentencing for manslaughter is expected to take place next Tuesday.

A CPS Spokesperson said: 'The CPS has a duty to keep cases under continuing review and, following a further review, we concluded there was no longer sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction for a murder charge.

'Eltiona Skana pleaded guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, and will be sentenced for that offence at a later date.

'We met with Emily's family earlier today to explain the reasons for our decision. This is a very tragic case and all our thoughts are with them at this time.'

FALSE ONLINE CLAIMS ABOUT KILLING FUELLED DISTRESS OF EMILY'S FAMILY 

Emily Jones' short life and brutal death became political capital for online, right-wing conspiracy theorists fuelling a White Lives Matter campaign and causing 'huge distress' to her family.

The portrait photo of the innocent youngster in her school uniform, blonde hair in pigtails, looking directly at the camera with a smile, became a meme shared on social media accompanied by the caption: 'I was decapitated infront of my parents at the park by a Somalian migrant.

'The media covered up my murder. My name was Emily Jones.'

Emily was not decapitated, there was no Somali migrant and no media cover-up. 

Emily's murder was contrasted with the Black Lives Matter protests, her image used alongside the banner White Lives Matter on Facebook, Twitter and Reddit.

Her parents issued a statement through Greater Manchester Police asking for the photo, issued as a tribute to their daughter, not to be used in any protests or campaigns.

'We hold this picture dear to our hearts and to see it being used in this way is incredibly upsetting – Emily loved everything and everyone, regardless of their race, gender or beliefs,' they said.

Emily was attacked on March 22 and within hours GMP had released details including the arrest of a 30-year-old woman on suspicion of murder. 

The arrested suspect's name or other identifying information were not given and would not be confirmed by GMP, as is now standard practice, as names of suspects are only given or confirmed if they are charged with an offence.

Eltiona Skana was charged with murder on May 25 and named by local, regional and national print, broadcast and online media.

That her nationality was Albanian not Somalian was confirmed from police sources and reported on.

Further background details could not be reported as the media are bound by law not to publish anything that could prejudice the fair trial of anyone accused of a crime.

Karl Holbrook, then-editor of The Bolton News, spoke of the 'crazed theories' and 'conspiracy theorists' who contacted him asking why the local paper had not named the suspect.

Speaking to the media website Hold The Front Page, he said: 'This day and age, people are quick to jump to irrational conclusions and crazy conspiracy theories about all sorts of things they read.

'It's easy to dismiss these people as idiots, which of course they are, but they are idiots that can ultimately deny families a chance for real justice by getting court cases thrown out because they think they can post whatever they like across the internet just because they have a Twitter account.

'It's precisely matters like this that underline the importance of a proper, informed and independent media.'