THIS is the chilling moment a killer watches a nine-year-old girl playing in the street before stabbing her to death through the heart.
Lithuanian national Deividas Skebas was captured stumbling across Lilia Valutyte as she played hula hoop with another child.
Skebas could be seen watching Lilia before he pounced
He then charged towards her while clutching a knife
Lilia Valutyte, nine, was stabbed to death in the streetCredit: PA
Deividas Skebas has been convicted of murderCredit: SWNS
The 26-year-old is then seen in the footage running towards her as he pulled a knife from the back pocket of his trousers while “barely altering his pace”.
Lincoln Crown heard he then thrust the blade through Lilia’s heart – causing her to collapse in the street outside her mum’s shop.
Tragically, the youngster could not be saved and died in her mum’s arms an hour after the attack July 28, 2022, in Boston, Lincolnshire.
Further footage shows police swooping to arrest Skebas in a residential street following the horror.
He can be heard uttering “yeah” as an officer tells him he’s being held on suspicion of murder.
Skebas is now facing life in prison after he was yesterday found guilty of murder following a trial.
He previously admitted manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.
The court heard Lilia was playing outside just after 6.15pm while “barely anyone was about”.
Skebas waited while other pedestrians moved out of the way before he pounced.
He knifed the tragic youngster with such force she was knocked backwards into some shutters, jurors heard.
Following the killing, Lilia’s mum Lina Savickiene ran over to find her daughter “covered in blood and with the hoop around her”.
She added in a statement: “She was getting pale. She collapsed in my hands. I saw the wounds, started to cover them.
“I just got scared, started to shout for somebody to help me.”
The pair had earlier headed into town to have lunch and do some shopping.
'Why her?' Lilia's heartbroken mum pays tribute
In a victim impact statement, grieving Lina said: “This is not something you recover from.
“Sometimes terrifying thoughts overwhelm the mind and during this trial there have been many, many more.”
She added: “Why her? Why us? The questions remain unanswered.”
Aurelijus Savickas, who became Lilia’s stepfather when she was three, added: “From that moment we walked our journey together.
“Becoming her stepfather was new for both of us, but I loved her as my own and always tried to be there for her.”
He said she was a “beautiful soul” with a “strong character”.
Aurelijus added: “Lilia, you will always live in our hearts, you are forever loved, forever missed.”
The mum let her daughter play outside from about 5pm because the street was “quiet”, but Lina checked up on her “quite often”.
Skebas was arrested on July 30 but his mental health was “declining” so he was transferred to hospital.
At the time, he was found not fit to be tried after he was diagnosed with .
The court heard that after the killing, he said he had “the power to resurrect” Lilia if the contacted “his controller in Nasa”.
Skebas was treated for his both in the UK and in , it was said.
He has been remanded into custody ahead of sentencing on February 25.
Marc Thompson from the Crown Prosecution Service said: “The sudden and tragic death of such a young child shook our community. We were determined that the perpetrator of this crime would face the full force of justice for what he did.
“Our case has always been that this was an unspeakable, deliberate act and not, as Skebas has claimed, the result of a mental abnormality.
“This has been a lengthy process for Lilyas’s family and loved ones, as they have been forced to wait for Skebas to be fit to take part in this trial. I would like to pay tribute to their resilience and patience and I hope that seeing justice served will be of some comfort to them. Our thoughts are with them and all who feel Lilya’s loss so keenly.”
Skebas had bought the knives from a Wilko’s
Lilia’s mum told how she collapsed in her arms after the horrorCredit: Facebook
Lilia was playing in the street when she was attackedCredit: Universal News & Sport
The youngster was tragically declared dead an hour laterCredit: PA
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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