Lucy McHugh murder – Carer arrested after schoolgirl, 13, found dead in woodland after being killed ‘with scissors’
A 24-year-old tattoo artist and care worker was arrested on suspicion of murder after Lucy's body was found on Thursday
A SCHOOLGIRL whose body was found dumped in woodland may have been stabbed to death with scissors, police have revealed.
Lucy McHugh, 13, was found dead about 24 hours after going missing, with police now searching for the "sharp implement" that claimed her life.
Family friend Stephen Nicholson, 24, was later arrested on suspicion of murder and sexual activity with a child.
The tattooist and care assistant worked alongside Lucy's careworker mum Stacey, 30, and had even been living with the family in recent months.
He remained in custody yesterday but the deadline for either charging or releasing him was in the early hours of this morning.
Detectives last night confirmed Lucy had died after being stabbed.
A Hampshire police spokesman said: "We are keen to hear from anyone who has found a sharp implement.
"We cannot say at this stage whether this is a knife, scissors or other bladed implement.
"Even if someone has put an item in a bin, we will try and recover it."
The youngster's body was found two miles from her home on Thursday morning, around 24 hours after she was last seen leaving her home in Southampton.
Forensics officers, dressed in white overalls, cordoned off a property, near Lucy's family home in Southampton, on Saturday as part of the murder investigation. The two-bed terraced property is believed to belong to Mr Nicholson's mother.
The murder suspect's dad last night vowed to disown his son if he's guilty.
Paul Nicholson, 46, told The Sun: "My thoughts are with the family of the little girl now.
"If I had a message for them it would be that I feel sorry for them and I don't want anything to do with my son if he's done this."
Paul, who lives in Port Talbot, South Wales and works for a mental health charity, said he hardly saw Stephen as he grew up after a "messy divorce" from his mum Teresa, 49.
He added: "I'm more concerned about the poor girl."
Lucy's devastated mum Stacey White had previously shared a fundraiser for her daughter's funeral, describing the teen as "My precious baby girl".
She also issued a plea on Facebook for people to stop making threats against Stephen's family as tensions ran high.
As cops searched Stephen's mum's house on the same street, she wrote: "Please can I ask that people are not passing blame onto family members of the person that has been arrested.
A FINAL FAREWELL: Pals raise funds for Lucy's funeral
A FUNDRAISING page has raise more than £6,000 in just 48 hours to organise Lucy McHugh's final farewell.
The GoFundMe page, set up by Max Kelly, was inundated with funds and tributes from friends.
In a post on the fundraising page, Mr Kelly, of Southampton, said: "Imagine unexpectedly losing your child; I couldn't imagine the pain could you?
"Now imagine on top of that having to find funeral costs etc while grieving - not something any parent should have to do.
"Sharing a status saying r.i.p doesn't help the family.
"Help them give their beautiful girl the send off she deserves with whatever you can afford to give helps the family."
More than 350 people have donated to the funeral costs since Mr Kelly set up the page two days ago, while Test Valley crematorium in Romsey, Hants, has offered to hold the service for free.
Crematorium assistant Annie Audin said: "We would be honoured to hold Lucy’s service here. This would be free of charge.
"I appreciate it’s all very raw and hard to come to terms with but hopefully we can be of some practical assistance during this sad and difficult time."
Tributes have been left for the teen, who never made it home on Wednesday
"Making threats of violence to them will not bring my angel back."
Detective Superintendent Paul Barton also called for calm as Stephen's Facebook page was bombarded with abuse.
He said: "We know how shocked the community is and understand that emotions are running high.
"However we ask people not to speculate on social media - it is unhelpful to the investigation and to Lucy’s family. Please allow us to do our job and find out what happened to Lucy."
Police released images of the type of clothes Lucy had been wearing, including her black jacket with white sleeves, which had the logo for the band Falling in Reverse on the front and RADKE 01 in red on the back She was also wearing a white vest top, camouflage leggings and black and white Jordan 23 trainers.
Police also said that her hair was blonder than in the photo the was released and that she'd been wearing large, hooped earrings.
Det Supt Barton added: “We’re hoping the images and descriptions of the type of clothing she was last seen wearing will jog people’s memories.
“So that we can piece together what she did after leaving her house, we urge anyone who saw Lucy, had contact with her or knows of her movements on Wednesday to get in touch."
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Friends have paid tribute to the "sweet girl" on social media, saying she had a smile "that lit up the room".
One told her mother: "So sorry for your loss, thoughts are with you and your family!! She was such a sweet girl, she will be missed at school a lot."
Another friend added: "Such a loss, she had a smile that lit up the room and I feel privileged to have known her and been able to call her a close friend. All my love to u guys , the brightest star in the sky - rip angel."
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