Tia Rigg (4 January 1998 – 3 April 2010) was a girl who was killed in

Cheetham Hill Cheetham is an inner-city area and electoral ward of Manchester, England, which in 2011 had a population of 22,562. It lies on the west bank of the River Irk, north of Manchester city centre, close to the boundary with Salford, bounded by Brou ...

, Manchester, England on 3 April 2010. Twelve-year-old Rigg was tortured, raped and murdered by her maternal uncle, John Maden. On 4 October 2010, 38-year-old Maden, who had pleaded guilty to the crime, was

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with a recommendation that he should never be released, meaning that he will likely remain in prison until he dies. Sentencing, Mr Justice Keith said: "This is one of those exceptional cases in which the only just punishment requires you to be imprisoned for the rest of your life."

Murder

At 2:17pm on 3 April 2010, Maden, who had an "obsessive interest" in pornography relating to paedophilia, rape and torture, telephoned his sister Lynne (Rigg's mother) and asked for Tia to go to his home in Dalmain Close, Cheetham Hill, in order to

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his 10-year-old daughter. When she arrived at 3:00pm, he drugged her with Olanzapine, an antipsychotic tranquilizer that he had been prescribed. He then inflicted a "horrific catalogue of sexual injuries" on her before stabbing her and strangling her with a ligature made from a

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. At 3:45pm, Maden telephoned the 999 emergency services number and said: "Hi, I would like to report a murder." He then gave his name and address and when asked by the operator what had happened he replied: "My niece has been murdered by me ... I have just finished killing her now." Asked why he had killed her he answered: "Because I felt like it" and terminated the call. Police officers from Greater Manchester Police arrived at the address two minutes later. Maden opened the door to the officers, who described him as "chillingly calm", and directed them upstairs. They found Rigg's body face-up on the floor of a spare bedroom. A

post-mortem An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any dis ...

found that Rigg had suffered severe blood loss from her stab wounds and internal injuries, but the primary cause of death was ligature strangulation.

Aftermath

Maden was tried at

Manchester Crown Court Manchester Crown Court (Crown Square) is a Crown Court venue which deals with criminal cases at Crown Square in Manchester, England. History Until the 1940s, criminal court cases were heard at the Manchester Assize Courts. However, the assize ...

on 4 October 2010. Prosecutor Gordon Cole QC told the court: "In the year or so prior to April this year, the defendant had developed what can properly be described as an obsessive interest in images and literature relating to paedophilia, rape and torture. He had an extensive library of such materials which included literature dealing with methods of killing." Police had found "hundreds of extreme images of child abuse and violent pornography" on Maden's laptop, plus more material on his mobile phone in folders named "snuff", "snuff stories" and "brutal rape".

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David Warren, who led the investigation, revealed that Maden refused to explain his actions and had never shown remorse for the killing. After pleading guilty to rape and murder, Maden was sentenced to life imprisonment with a recommendation that he should never be released. Passing sentence, Mr Justice Keith told him: "It is inescapable that Tia Rigg died because you decided to realise your fantasies about torturing and killing a young child. It is difficult to know how long Tia's ordeal lasted. The terror, the unimaginable pain you inflicted on her, the indignities you subjected her to while still alive. It was planned, it was premeditated and her agony must have been prolonged. This is one of those exceptional cases in which the only just punishment requires you to be imprisoned for the rest of your life."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rigg, Tia 2010 in England 2010 murders in the United Kingdom 2010s crimes in Manchester 2010s trials April 2010 crimes April 2010 events in the United Kingdom Child sexual abuse in England Deaths by person in England Incestual abuse Incidents of violence against girls Murder in Manchester Murder trials in the United Kingdom Rape in England Rape trials Torture in England Trials in England Female murder victims Child abuse resulting in death Child murder in England

Murder

Aftermath

See also

References