Lucy McHugh murder: Stephen Nicholson jailed for life for ‘execution-style’ killing of schoolgirl

Twenty-five-year-old must spend at least 33 years behind bars for 'pitiless attack on a child following months of sexual exploitation'

A care worker has been jailed for life and will serve a minimum of 33 years for the “execution-style” murder of schoolgirl Lucy McHugh.

“Predatory paedophile” Stephen Nicholson, 25, stabbed the 13-year-old to death in Southampton last summer to stop her speaking out about months of sexual abuse.

He was convicted of murder and three count of rape on Thursday following a four-week trial at Winchester Crown Court.

Lucy was 12 when she was first raped by Nicholson, who was living as a lodger at her family home. After she threatened to tell people about the abuse, he lured the teenager to woodland at the outdoor Southampton Sports Centre on 25 July and stabbed her 27 times in the neck and chest.

Sentencing him on Friday, Mrs Justice May said: “This was a pitiless attack on a child following months of sexual exploitation.

“The prosecution has described it as an execution and I am satisfied this is correct.

“The combination of his cold narcissism and hot anger dictated that she had to be put out of the way and he saw to it that this was done.”

Stephen Nicholson will spend at least 33 years in prison (PA)

Prosecutor William Mousley QC had described the murder as a premeditated, “execution-style” killing.

Lucy had threatened to tell her mother that Nicholson had got her pregnant, although a post-mortem examination showed that she was not pregnant at the time of her death.

Nicholson, who was also given 17-year concurrent prison sentences for each of the rape charges, showed no emotion as he was jailed.

He was also sentenced to nine months in prison sexual activity with another girl, who was 14 at the time, in 2012.

Nicholson had previously been jailed in 2010 for two years for holding staff and youngsters at a children’s home hostage at knifepoint.

He was later given a further year’s detention when he barricaded himself into the prison canteen at a young offender’s institute with three other inmates and “tried to stab a staff member”, Mr Mousley said.

Nicholson was also jailed in August 2018 for 14 months for refusing to reveal his Facebook password to police investigating Lucy‘s murder.

It meant detectives were forced to wait months before the social media company handed over details of communications between Nicholson and the teenager.

This prompted calls from senior officers and politicians for police to be given quicker access to social media accounts when investigating serious crimes.

Detectives overseeing the investigation – described by the Crown Prosecution Service as “one of the largest in criminal history” - applied through the US courts for access to his Facebook account.

But, on the day the trial started, prosecutors received only a log of his Facebook contacts with Lucy and not the content of any messages.

A serious case review has also been launched to examine the handling of Lucy’s case by Southampton City Council’s social services, which had been alerted by two schools about Lucy’s relationship with Nicholson but took no action.

The judge said: “The question is how social services could have arrived at that conclusion not once but twice given what Lucy had told friends and what Nicholson has been convicted of.”

Mr Mousley described Lucy as “vulnerable” because of her age and because she had been diagnosed as having ADHD.

James Newton-Price QC, in mitigation, said: “It does appear the defendant, now aged 25, had a difficult background that is obvious from being sent to a children’s home at the age of 13/14.

“He is, at 25, a relatively young man, he has a young son, he will have to serve a long time in custody.”

Nicholson was linked to the murder through DNA evidence found on him and Lucy’s clothing. He had tried to cover his tracks by inflicting wounds on Lucy that could be interpreted as self-inflicted and also posed in different clothing on CCTV at a Tesco Express shop.

Detective Superintendent Paul Barton, of Hampshire Police, said following the trial: “I would describe Nicholson as cold and calculated, I would describe him as a paedophile and I think he is someone who only thinks about himself and has taken full advantage of this family that have looked after him, provided a roof over his head yet with his sexual appetite.

“He has targeted Lucy, taken advantage of her and when she wanted a relationship with him, he has taken the decision to silence her once and for all by brutally killing her.”

Speaking outside court, Lucy‘s father, Andy McHugh, said: “I am happy with the result, at the end of the day he is serving life and unless he shows remorse he will never get out.”

He said his daughter’s death had “left a void that will never be filled”. He added: ”We still do not know how to come to terms with someone committing such cruelty and violence against our defenceless little girl.

“Without Nicholson’s evil desire for sexual gratification and his brutal destruction of her life, we would never have had to go through this and Lucy would still be alive.

Additional reporting by PA