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Sick child killer David Boyd has been jailed decades after the brutal stabbing of Nikki Allan, aged seven.
The youngster was lured to her death in a derelict warehouse just 300 yards from her family home in Sunderland's East End back in 1992, and Boyd has finally faced justice.
Boyd, 55, who was convicted of the murder he carried out 30 years ago last Friday (May 19), has finally been brought to justice and has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 29 years Newcastle Crown Court.
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Boyd reportedly showed no reaction to the sentence as he left the dock.
Nikki was just seven when she was coaxed to the property and beaten with a brick before Boyd stabbed her 37 times in the chest in a sickening attack.
During the sentencing, Mrs Justice Lambert said she was sure he had sexually assaulted the little girl, or attempted to, after “tricking” her into following him that night.
She was certain Boyd murdered the child after the assault, or attempt, in order to silence her.
The judge said: “She must have quickly known she was trapped. She must have quickly known you were coming after her to hurt her.
“It was cold and dark. It must have been a truly terrifying experience for this seven-year-old girl.”
Northumbria Police has since apologised to both Nikki's family and to George Heron, a man prosecuted for murder in 1993 and was subsequently cleared.
Sharon Henderson, the mum of Nikki, had campaigned for a fresh look into the case of her daughter's murder for years, and finally received it in 2017.
Re-opening the investigation led to the charges levelled at child killer Boyd and an apology from the police to Sharon, who says she may sue the force for their "mistakes" in investigating, ChronicleLive reported.
She believes Boyd should have been a prime suspect due to living close to Nikki's grandparents at the time of the murder and connections to the family through his girlfriend, who was the youngsters babysitter.
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An apology from the police was also issued to Mr Heron, who denied the murder 120 times over the course of three days of questioning before a confession was made.
It was heard the oppressive questioning led to the conviction of Heron, a neighbour to the family at the time, which was overturned in 1993.
Assistant Chief Constable Alastair Simpson has since apologised to both on behalf of the force, saying: "I am truly sorry for mistakes that were made in the 1992 investigation and I am sorry for the length of time it has taken to get justice for the family."
Boyd was found guilty of murder at Newcastle Crown Court after just 90 minutes of deliberations.
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