Emily Jones Murderer Eltiona Skana Loses Sentence Appeal
Eltiona Skana, 31, who killed Emily Jones in Bolton’s Queen’s Park, has had her life sentence appeal rejected. Skana, diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, was ordered to serve at least 10 years and eight months behind bars.
Life Sentence Stands After Appeal
Skana admitted manslaughter on grounds of diminished responsibility but was cleared of murder. Despite her lawyers pushing for a hospital order with restrictions instead of prison time, three senior judges upheld the original sentence. Skana challenged both the life sentence and the minimum term, but the Court of Appeal dismissed her appeal.
The 31-year-old attended the appeal hearing via video link from Rampton Hospital, where she is currently held in high security.
Judge: Mental Illness Doesn’t Erase Responsibility
At the December 2020 sentencing at Minshull Street Crown Court, Mr Justice Wall stressed that, despite her illness, Skana retained a “significant amount of responsibility.” He ordered a hybrid sentence: she serves time in a hospital but could be transferred to prison if her condition improves enough.
“The Crown Court judge was entitled to reach the conclusions he did on both the nature of the sentence and the minimum term,” said Lady Justice Macur, dismissing Skana’s appeal.
The Shocking Attack in Queen’s Park
Emily Jones, then out scootering with her father Mark Jones, 49, passed Skana sitting alone on a bench armed with a knife. Without warning, Skana stood up and slit Emily’s throat before fleeing the scene.
Skana, an Albanian national and asylum seeker who arrived in the UK in 2014, had a long history of mental illness and was not taking her anti-psychotic medication on the day of the attack.
Date: Wednesday 2 February 2022 First Published: 19:13 GMT
