Boy, 14, denies murdering teenage girl in south Wales

A 14-year-old boy has denied killing a teenage girl whose body was found with stab wounds after she went missing.

Lilly Jones, also 14, was discovered in the Duffryn Park area of Blaina, south Wales, on 22 June after she was reported missing two days earlier.

At Newport Crown Court on Tuesday, the defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded not guilty to her murder.

An inquest opening at Gwent Coroner’s Court previously heard Lilly is believed to have died from multiple stab wounds.

The teenager was reported missing from her home address in Blaina on the evening of 20 June.

Her body was discovered in a woodland location, with injuries to her chest and neck, on 22 June.

In a tribute issued through Gwent Police, Lilly’s family said previously: “As a family, the word ‘heartbroken’ doesn’t come close to what we feel.

“We’d like to focus more on Lilly and what a beautiful person she is rather than the horrific thing she’s been forced to endure.

“Lilly is the most beautiful, kind and caring little girl we had the privilege to call our daughter, sister, grand-daughter, niece, cousin and friend.

“She is completely and utterly herself, she’s quirky and confident, sassy and dramatic, and loves her music.

“Her eclectic taste in music took us from My Chemical Romance to Kate Bush and absolutely unapologetically sang every word on the top of her voice, no matter who’s listening.

“We could write a book about how amazing and accepting of all types of people she is, advocating for anyone who needed her to.

“Our loss has left an unimaginable hole in not only our lives but in the whole community.”

Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, the Recorder of Cardiff, previously fixed a trial date beginning on November 23 which is due to last four weeks.

The defendant, from the Blaenau Gwent area of south-east Wales, was previously described by police as white British.