A man who murdered a seven-year-old girl in Sunderland more than three decades ago has been jailed for at least 29 years.
David Boyd, 55, was convicted earlier this month of the murder of Nikki Allan in 1992.
Boyd lured the schoolgirl to a derelict warehouse in the city’s East End before beating her with a brick and stabbing her in the chest 37 times.
Nikki was either dead or dying when she was dumped in the basement of the Old Exchange building, with her shoes and coat discovered the following morning during by people searching for her.
She was last seen by a witness playing outside a block of flats where she lived and skipping behind a suspect – now known to be Boyd – the boyfriend of a woman who babysat for Nikki’s family.
The court also heard victim impact statements from Nikki’s family, including her mother, Sharon Henderson, who has spent decades campaigning for justice.
‘Our lives have never been the same’
Ms Henderson described Nikki as a “bright and sparky child who was always a mammy’s girl” and who had a “beautiful smile”.
Her statement, read to the court by prosecutor Richard Wright KC, said: “I cannot put into words how I felt when I heard Nikki was missing and was ultimately found murdered.”
She added: “I’m 57 and I’ve spent more than 30 years fighting for justice.
“My life and that of my family has never been the same since Nikki was murdered.
“By murdering Nikki, David Boyd destroyed the life of my beautiful daughter, my life and the lives of my daughters and grandchildren.
“We have not been able to live normal lives since that day.”
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Police prosecuted an innocent suspect, George Heron, for murder in 1993 but he was cleared.
Ms Henderson revealed the “horror” of the trial and how she believed Mr Heron had “got away with Nikki’s murder”.
She said she was accused of being a “bad mother” after the acquittal and felt people were angry with her rather than Nikki’s killer.
The hunt to find the person responsible had a huge impact on her physical and mental health, leading her to be hospitalised and sectioned.
She was also arrested after challenging people she believed could have been covering for others in her pursuit of information, the court heard.
“I’ve felt so frustrated over the years because I felt I had not been listened to,” Ms Henderson said.
“I speak to Nikki all the time and tell her I will never give up.”
Mr Heron had to leave Sunderland to begin a new life, despite being found not guilty.
He was subjected to oppressive questioning during three days of interviews, when he denied having any involvement in the murder 120 times – before making some kind of confession.
Northumbria Police apologised to Mr Heron following Boyd’s conviction.
The force also issued formal apologies to Nikki’s family for the length of time it took to bring Boyd to justice and acknowledged mistakes had been made during the investigation.
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While Boyd remained at large, he indecently assaulted a nine-year-old girl at a park in Teesside in 1999.
He later confessed to his probation officer that he had previously had sexual fantasies about naked “young girls”.
Ms Henderson refused to give up hope her daughter’s killer would be apprehended and eventually got the backing from Northumbria Police’s then chief constable for a fresh inquiry in 2017.
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New DNA techniques extracted traces of Nikki’s clothing in a breakthrough which ultimately led police to Boyd.
However, more than 800 men in Sunderland volunteered to give DNA samples so they could be eliminated from the inquiry.
Boyd, who was 25 at the time of the killing, denied murder. He refused to go into the witness box to give evidence.
