The Murder of Tia Rigg
Tia Simone Rigg was 12-year-old a schoolgirl who lived with her mother and grandparents in Manchester. Described as a smiley and happy girl, Tia did not have an easy life. Even before she was born, Tia was on the child protection register due to her mother's drug addiction. In 1998, child protection agencies said that Tia was 'likely to suffer neglect,' and later that she was 'likely to suffer physical abuse.'
At 2.17 pm on 3rd April 2010, Tia's 38-year-old maternal uncle John Maden phoned Tia's mother and asked Tia to go to his house to babysit his daughter. When Tia arrived at the home at 3 pm, he drugged her with Olanzapine.
Maden then inflicted a 'horrific catalogue of sexual injuries' before stabbing and strangling her to death. At 3.45 pm, Maden phoned emergency services and said 'I would like to report a murder,' when asked how the emergency had happened he replied 'my niece has been murdered by me... I have just finished killing her now.' When asked why he answered 'Because I felt like it' and hung up the phone.
Police arrived at the address two minutes later and a 'chillingly calm' Maden opened the door and directed them upstairs. Tia's body was found on the floor of a spare bedroom, naked except for socks, with a ligature tied around her neck and her hands tied behind her back. Next to her body were two knives, a broom handle and sex toy, all of which were stained with blood.
During Maden's trial evidence emerged that he had developed an obsessive interest in paedophilia, rape and torture. He had an extensive library of videos on the topic including folders named 'snuff' and 'brutal rape.'
Maden pleaded guilty to rape and murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment, with the judge saying: '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.'