MAN IN VIOLENT RAGE KILLS NIECE AND WOUNDS FAMILY OVER HOUSEHOLD BILLS
A man fatally stabbed his niece and made an attempt to kill her mother and her boyfriend following an intense fury over household expenses, a court was told.Stephen Burns, aged 50 and without a fixed residence, was residing with his sister Violet, 61, on Hill Street in Toxteth last December when he allegedly attacked her and her 19-year-old daughter, Natalie O’Donoghue, with a knife, and attempted to harm her boyfriend, Paul Redmond.
The victim, Miss Burns, was stabbed three times and testified at Liverpool Crown Court that she had been in dispute with her brother about money owed for household bills.
She recounted: “He turned around and said ‘I’ve had enough of you,’ approached me, and grabbed me by the throat.” Burns, who denies the charges, was scheduled to move out on December 10—the same day as the incident—and the court heard that the argument on that day took place in the living room about finances.
She described how he was grabbing her neck, fearing for her life, and how he then said, “I’ll be back.” She explained that Burns then went upstairs, where her daughter was with her boyfriend.
The court was told that she heard her daughter tell Burns, “Ste, my mum’s already asked you to go, why don’t you go?” followed by a scream.
Upon reaching the upstairs, she saw Burns standing at his bedroom door with a knife in hand.
She fled downstairs, with Burns chasing her, and contacted the police.
She also observed her brother fighting with Mr.
Redmond outside, while her daughter lay on the ground receiving mouth-to-mouth from a neighbor.
The violence was believed to have been sparked by a dispute over money, and Burns is charged with intentionally causing the deadliness and injuries during this violent episode.
She added: “I was shouting ‘breathe Nat, breathe’.”
