Violet-Grace killer slammed for social media birthday post

Aidan McAteer marked his 24th birthday by posting on Instagram an image of a card apparently from fellow inmates in which he is called HMP Birthday Boy.

In May, he was jailed for nine years and four months after he drove a stolen vehicle at 80mph in a 30mph zone and hit Violet-Grace Youens and seriously injured her grandmother Angela French, from Golborne, in St Helens.

He left both his victims lying in the road in March this year and within hours was on a plane to Amsterdam before he later gave himself in after his own mother made a public appeal to him to come back to the UK.

The Liverpool Echo reported McAteer had posted more than a dozen images on Instagram since his sentence, which were thought to be made on a mobile phone smuggled into prison.

Bringing a mobile phone into prison or transmitting sounds or images from within a prison using a mobile phone can carry a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

Prison officials are investigating the matter.

Writing on Facebook, Violet-Grace’s mother, Rebecca Youens said: “Well happy birthday to you Aiden Macateer... nice how you are actually alive and can hug your mum and contact friends and family on your birthday.

“My beautiful innocent Violet-Grace who you killed, you child killer, is reduced to ashes ... you are so disrespectful, and obviously do not care what you have done.

“If you had to see the images and have the nightmares I have on a constant basis maybe you might have a slight insight to our pain and suffering!!! Your (sic) not sorry, only sorry you were caught.

“If you must know, I have a big birthday coming up, which I cannot face to celebrate without my baby girl. I just about get through each hour!!! We are eagerly awaiting her headstone, instead of shopping for her school uniform.

“Oh and her birthday is not far away in the autumn ... she would be 5, and settling into Reception class with all her friends. Instead they are traumatised by your actions and scared ‘the bad man will get them too’!!!!”

She added: “You have not learned your lesson ... only a few months in prison and already breaking the rules and disrespecting my daughter who you killed!!!

“You are evil and I hope one day you realise the devastation and carnage you have caused.”

Violet-Grace’s father, Glenn, also wrote on Facebook: “You’ve got no remorse what so ever. You got out of the car and you stepped over Violet’s lifeless body in the road and ran off while other people was running to help her!!!

“While she was in a hospital bed after 3 cardiac arrests and was unable to breathe or her heart beat for herself, you was in Amsterdam “smoking weed to clear your head” what kind of man are you!!!

“I hope MOJ make an example of you and not let us down for having a phone in prison and give you more time than just an extra 3 months as we all have a life sentence, and anything extra you get inside is no less than you deserve.”