The family of a 16-year-old girl who was allegedly stabbed to death in a row over a boy have paid tribute to their ‘world’.
Chloe Watson Dransfield, from Gomersal, West Yorkshire, died on Saturday morning after suffering stab wounds.
The teenager, described by her heartbroken family as a ‘loyal, honest, family-oriented princess’, was found unresponsive in the quiet Austhorpe suburb of Leeds at 6am on Saturday.
Despite the best attempts of neighbours who came to her rescue, she was pronounced dead shortly after being taken to hospital by paramedics.
Police have launched a murder investigation and on Monday arrested a fifth person, a 17-year-old boy on suspicion of murder.
He is in custody, along with two women, both 18, a man, 19 and a boy, 17, who were previously arrested on suspicion of murder. All are from Leeds.
Chloe’s family said they are ‘utterly devastated’ by her death and the ‘absence she leaves behind is immeasurable’.
They said: My beautiful princess Chloe. I cannot put into words how I feel that you are not here with me.
‘You are my life, my world, my best friend and I know that I am yours. I cannot live without you – I need you.
‘You are stunning, confident, loyal, honest and my family-oriented princess.
‘When you walk into any room it lights up with your bubbly personality. There is so much I could say. There’s a big hole in my heart that can never be filled.
‘Your two sisters and big brother will always love and miss you to infinity. You will always and forever be in our hearts. Love Mum, Connor, Courtney and Cienna.’
Other family members added: ‘Our family is utterly devastated by the loss of Chloe.
‘We miss every single thing about her. She was beautiful, full of joy, and had a wonderfully cheeky personality.
‘She embraced life with such happiness, and she had her whole future ahead of her.
‘Chloe was loved by everyone who knew her, and the absence she leaves behind is immeasurable.
‘We will miss her forever, she will never be forgotten. Love you always and forever Dad, Sacha, Reuben, Mia, Amelia, Grandma, Grandad and Uncle Jordan.’
After Chloe’s death, one man who tried to assist said she had been ‘stabbed in the back’.
And as part of an online fundraiser, a woman identifying herself as a cousin said her ‘life was taken in a flash over a boy.’
On Monday, flowers were being laid at the scene in Leeds, some 13 miles from where Chloe lived.
One of the messages said it was to ‘my beautiful girl’ and ‘rest easy my Chloe. Love you forever my crazy girl.’
On the fundraising page, her relative said her ‘life was sadly taken in tragedy, 16 years young, didn’t even make it to her 18th, her whole life was taken in a flash over a boy.’
The relative added: ‘I wanted to create a GoFundMe to help give her the best send-off possible.
‘She didn’t deserve this. She was so full of life. Such an innocent beautiful soul taken too soon.’
Neighbour Wayne Mallows described how he and other residents tried to save the ‘lifeless’ girl.
The 64-year-old told the Daily Mail he performed CPR on the teenager on the pavement close to his home.
‘I was called out of the house about 5.50am on Saturday morning by a dog walker,’ he said.
‘She said that my neighbour was outside doing CPR on a young girl. He was getting tired.
‘I asked if they’d rung an ambulance and then I realised that a phone was on the ground and he had it on loudspeaker. Ambulance control were giving him instructions.
‘I took over until the ambulance arrived 10 minutes later. She had been stabbed in the back and there was quite a bit of blood. Her eyes were just blank.’
A man who answered the door at Chloe’s mother’s home was too upset to comment. Several floral tributes and cards had been left outside.
Mr Mallows said he was struggling to get the image of the girl’s face out of his mind.
‘When the ambulance arrived around 6am the paramedics got all the kit out and tried to reactive the heart and they were doing chest compressions,’ he added.
‘They did that for about five minutes and then got her into the ambulance. Police were arriving all the time.
‘In my mind I have a picture of her face.
‘To me she looked very young, younger than 16.’
He added that she was wearing a ‘blouse with a little beige coat over it, and a dress and she had thick socks on’.
Kennerleigh Avenue, in the Austhorpe suburb of the city, where Chloe was found, consists mainly of old folks’ bungalows, and is usually very quiet, Mr Mallows said.
‘It is mostly elderly people in the bungalows, they come here to retire,’ he added.
Extensive tributes to the youngster were posted online on Facebook and TikTok.
One read: ‘Rest in eternal peace beautiful girl, u (sic) was loved by many and gunna be missed forever.’
Another wrote: ‘Your bubbly personality, your weird laugh, your cringy jokes will forever be unmatched. You always made sure everyone was feeling litty and loved…it’s truly devastating.’
Detective Chief Inspector James Entwistle, of West Yorkshire Police, said: Our thoughts remain with Chloe’s family at this incredibly difficult time. Our specially-trained officers continue to provide them with support.
‘Our investigation into her death is ongoing and five people arrested on suspicion of murder remain in custody, as we continue to establish the full circumstances of this incident.
‘I am appealing to anyone with any relevant information to contact us. If you have any mobile phone footage that you believe might be connected to this incident then you can send it to our Major Incident Public Portal at the below link.’
