A man has been jailed for life for stabbing his 11-year-old nephew to death in the south-west of the country in late 2019.
His sentence hearing heard he had become obsessed with the boy and used to refer to him as his “King”.
Neither of them can be named because of a law which prohibits the identification of child victims of crime, even in cases where the child is dead.
Harrowing details were heard today about how the young boy was killed. He was hit with a hammer and stabbed 27 times in the kitchen of a house in the south-west.
His uncle handed himself in afterwards, claiming a voice in his head told him to do it, but he wasn’t deemed to be psychotic at the time.
Section 252 of the Children Act prohibits the identification of child victims.
A ruling last year confirmed that protection also exists in cases where the child is dead.
No identifying facts can be revealed, including the names of the boy’s parents who gave emotional victim impact statements today, outlining what a wonderful son he was and how he was robbed of a very bright future by such an ‘evil act'.
The boy’s mother, who also can’t be named in case it leads to the identification of her son, is calling on the Minister for Justice to fast-track plans to change the law.
She said: "I want to appeal to the Justice Minister Helen McEntee to change this law.
"I deserve to be able to leave this court today, and tell the world about my wonderful son... the kind, caring, talented little boy my son is.
"His name and his legacy deserves to be out there, for all the world to see and hear."
