WARNING, DISTRESSING CONTENT: The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had become obsessed with a 14-year-old girl and had been sending her messages via fake social media accounts after she rejected him
A 14-year-old boy has been sentenced for a knife assault on a teenage girl in a Cirencester shop earlier this year as horror CCTV footage from the incident has been released.
The Wiltshire teen pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to wounding with intent, causing grievous bodily harm without intent, and possession of a bladed article in a public place.
He appeared at Bristol Crown Court, sitting as a youth court, today (September 21) where he was given a 12-month referral order and a three-year restraining order. The court was told that the boy, who cannot be named due to legal reasons, had developed an obsession with a 14-year-old girl at his school.
After she spurned his advances in December 2025, he began to use fake social media accounts to send her messages, reports Gloucestershire Live.
Police were summoned to Upper Churnside in Cirencester around 11.15am on Sunday, March 15 this year following a report of a stabbing.
The boy had been lying in wait for the girl near a shop and had entered it armed with a kitchen knife in his jeans pocket after seeing her go in to buy a drink. He seized her forcefully and attacked her repeatedly with the knife.
The shopkeeper, who was present in the store at the time, tried to grab the boy and pull him away. The boy then stabbed the shopkeeper in the back, causing him to flee.
During this, the girl managed to escape from the shop and raise the alarm at a neighbouring property.
Following the assault, the 14-year-old girl was left with cuts to her neck, hands and face, as well as bruising on her back. The shopkeeper also suffered a cut to his back.
The boy made a run for it but was soon located by police nearby. Upon searching him, they found a knife in his jeans pocket. He also had a fresh cut on his hand.
In a Victim Personal Statement read out in court, the girl said: “I’m scared and nervous anywhere that I go. Even if someone puts their hand up next to me I flinch as I don’t know what they are about to do to me. I know this is as a result of the incident, as I wasn’t like this before.
“I was in so much shock after it happened. I didn’t leave the house for a couple of days. I never thought something like this would ever happen to me, or anyone I know at all.
“I’ve been having nightmares since; I relive the incident, but in these dreams it happens in different places. I sleep in the dark but when I wake, I constantly feel like there is a presence in the room. I can’t stop thinking about it.
“This is going to affect my ability to trust people. I’m now getting dropped off to work…because I don’t want to be outside on my own. I shouldn’t have to feel like this as a teenager in my own area.”
Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Superintendent Ian Fletcher, Head of Serious and Complex Investigations, commented: “This was a frenzied attack that took place in broad daylight.
“The victim was stabbed multiple times with a knife and has been very, very lucky to get away with only minor injuries. We could easily have been looking at a fatal incident if that knife had pierced her anywhere else.
“My hope now is that the victim is able to move on from these deeply traumatic events and start to rebuild her life again.”