Anastasia "Ana" Kriégel (; 18 February 2004 14 May 2018) was a Russian-Irish girl who was subject to a violent attack, murder and sexual assault in an abandoned house in May 2018 in

Lucan Marcus Annaeus Lucanus (3 November 39 AD – 30 April 65 AD), better known in English as Lucan (), was a Roman poet, born in Corduba (modern-day Córdoba), in Hispania Baetica. He is regarded as one of the outstanding figures of the Imperial ...

near Dublin. Two boys, known only as Boy A and Boy B, who were 13 years old at the time of Kriégel's death, were convicted of her murder, with one of the boys (Boy A) being further convicted of

aggravated sexual assault The precise definitions of and punishments for aggravated sexual assault and aggravated rape vary from nation to nation and state to state within nations. Effects on victims Aggravated sexual assault can lead to short- or long-term effects. Ma ...

. The two convicts are the youngest in the history of Ireland to be charged with murder.

Ana Kriégel

Early life

Anastasia () was born in Novokuznetsk, Russia in 2004 and placed in an orphanage. In 2006, she was

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

by Geraldine Kriégel and her French-born husband Patric Kriégel (who passed away in June 2022, four years after her murder) and came to live in Ireland. Though her parents had no cultural links to Russia themselves, they tried to make sure she kept connections with Russian culture, such as keeping her original given name.

Growing up in Ireland

Kriégel was said to be a happy girl during most of her time in primary school, despite some health issues, such as a tumour that had to be removed from her right ear, which left her nearly deaf in that ear. She also suffered from sight problems. She struggled to make friends at the

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

she attended. She was suspended for painting a black eye onto herself; her mother thinks that the painted eye was an expression of the pain she felt inside. She suffered from

bullying Bullying is the use of force, coercion, hurtful teasing or threat, to abuse, aggressively dominate or intimidate. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception (by the bully or by others) of an imba ...

, and self-harmed on one occasion in 2017. Some of the bullying began before she started secondary school with

online bullying Cyberbullying or cyberharassment is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Cyberbullying and cyberharassment are also known as online bullying. It has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers, as the digital ...

about her height and the fact that she was adopted. Some of the bullying messages were of a sexual nature. She also set up fake social media accounts to "bully" herself. After this, her mother insisted that Ana give her the passwords to all her apps, so her mother could check them.

Disappearance

On 14 May 2018, Ana attended a

counselling session Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of co ...

. She went home from school, changed out of uniform and walked to Leixlip town centre. She came back and went up to her room before the child later known as ''Boy B'' called to the Kriégel home at 5:00 p.m. This was unusual; Ana's mother Geraldine recalled that Ana had no friends and that "nobody calls for Ana." Ana was last seen at 5:30 p.m. in St Catherine’s Park.

Discovery, investigation and trial

Ana Kriégel's body was found on Thursday, 17 May 2018 in Glenwood House, a derelict James Gandon-designed 19th-century farmhouse, located in the townland of Coldblow west of

. Her clothes were found scattered in the house. Death was caused by blunt force injuries and bloodied pieces of wood were found in the house. There were also signs of

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...

(attempt at penetration and semen on her shirt) and blue Tescon building tape was found around her neck. Two boys, both aged 13, immediately came under suspicion. As minors, they could not be named in the media, and to this day are known in reports as Boy A and Boy B, as they were granted lifelong anonymity at their trial. They were the youngest people in the history of the Republic of Ireland to be charged with murder. Both were charged with

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

; Boy A was additionally charged with

. Both charges carry potential life sentences for adults, but these are not mandatory for children. Their trial began in the Central Criminal Court on 29 April 2019.

Murder verdict

The two accused were found guilty of murder on 18 June 2019. The jury had deliberated for over fourteen hours. After the verdict, Mr. Justice

Paul McDermott Paul Anthony Michael McDermott (born 13 May 1962) is an Australian entertainer, best known both for ''Good News Week'' and for his role as a member of the musical comedy group the Doug Anthony All Stars. He has frequently appeared at the Melb ...

thanked the jury members and relieved them from jury duty for the rest of their lives. Prosecuting counsel said there were places available at

Oberstown Children Detention Campus Oberstown Children Detention Campus (; ) is a youth detention centre located in the north part of County Dublin (Fingal), Ireland. It houses both male and female offenders. History Trinity House Reformatory School, a high-security instituti ...

. The judge remanded them in custody and adjourned sentencing to 15 July. Sentencing was further adjourned to October in order that psychological assessments could take place. A number of posts appeared on social media platforms including Twitter and Facebook that identified the two boys despite a court order being made preventing this. An injunction was served on Twitter and Facebook to remove all of these posts.

Sentencing

The sentencing took place on 5 November 2019. Boy A was sentenced to life with a review period after twelve years for Ana's murder. Additionally he was sentenced to twelve years for aggravated sexual assault. This sentence is to run alongside the murder sentence. His co-accused, known as Boy B, was sentenced to fifteen years for Ana’s murder. This will be reviewed after a period of eight years. Outside the court, Ana's father Patric said "forever is not long enough" in response to the sentences. The boys will be offered new identities after release. Patric Kriégel died on 19 June 2022.

Incarceration

The boys were both held in the Oberstown Detention Centre in North Dublin until 2022. The pair were then transferred to an adult prison upon turning 18. In May 2020, Boy A, then aged 15, was assaulted by fellow inmates, suffering minor injuries.

Tributes and public reaction

Ana Kriégel's funeral took place on 31 May 2018 at Newlands Cross Crematorium, Dublin. Her family requested that mourners wear "sparkle and colour" in Ana's memory and that donations be made to the Russian Irish Adoption Group. A Russian flag and matryoshka doll were placed on her coffin. After the trial, her parents spoke outside the court. Her father said "Ana was our strength." Her mother said "Ana was a dream come true for us and she always will be. She will stay in our hearts, forever loved and forever cherished. We love you, Ana." A charity to help other teenagers was set up in her honor by Ana's family with the Russian Irish Adoption Group (RIAG), and called ANA (Ana’s Network of Adolescents). Denise Fergus, the mother of James Bulger, expressed concern about the decision not to name Ana's killers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kriégel, Ana 2010s missing person cases 2018 murders in the Republic of Ireland Crime in County Dublin Deaths by person in the Republic of Ireland Female murder victims Formerly missing people Incidents of violence against girls Leixlip May 2018 crimes in Europe Missing person cases in Ireland Murder committed by minors Violence against women in Ireland Child murder in Ireland