Ava White was stabbed 'out of the blue' says witness

A friend of Ava White said the schoolgirl was stabbed "out of the blue" by a boy with a "cheeky smile".

Pre-recorded evidence from the friend was played at Liverpool Crown Court on the third day of the trial of a 14-year-old boy accused of murdering Ava, 12, in Liverpool city centre on November 25 last year.

The 16-year-old, who was with Ava and other friends on the night, described a "disagreement" with the defendant and his three friends after they were seen filming the group.

She said: "Ava got a bit angry and was just saying, 'Delete the video. You've got my face on there. I don't want to be posted anywhere'."

The witness, who cannot be named for legal reasons, described Ava and the defendant arguing.

She said: "He pushed her. She went to retaliate. He backed away.

"Just out of the blue he's lifted his arm up and caught her in the neck.

"We thought at first he'd punched her. Then he started running.

"At first she stood there. Then she went pale. She started saying, 'Ow. Ow'.

"She was screaming, 'Ow', and she pulled her coat down and we could see all the blood.

"We walked by Primark and she collapsed on the floor."

The friend said the defendant, who appeared in court via video link, had a "cheeky smile".

She told the court she saw him pull something from his waistband.

"He brought it up to Ava's neck," she said.

"It was dead fast."

The teenager said the boy and his friends called Ava a "muppet" before the confrontation.

She added: "She wasn't really an argumentative person, she just didn't really like random people saying stuff to her."

The court also heard evidence from an 11-year-old boy who said he saw Ava after she had been hurt.

He said: "I just heard her scream so I ran over. She was breathing heavily.

"She collapsed on the corner."

The boy told police he tried to stop Ava from following the group of boys but she thought she was "invincible".

However, he denied she had wanted a fight.

Another friend of Ava's, aged 15, said there had been a conversation about fighting and "blades" with the defendant's group of friends.

She said one of the boys with the defendant said: "None of us carry blades."

The girl told the court after Ava was fatally stabbed her alleged killer "started laughing and started running".

She said: "I just seen the lad smiling and running and start laughing so I just chased him."

The defendant denies murder and an alternative charge of manslaughter.