Mum sobs as she tells inquest how her 12-year-old was 'raped and groomed' before she took her own life

The mother of a young girl who tragically took her own life after being allegedly groomed and raped by an older boy was left in tears as she recounted how her daughter had been "destroyed mentally and physically".

Semina Halliwell, from Southport, was only 12 years old when she passed away at Alder Hey Children's Hospital on June 12, 2021, succumbing to the effects of an overdose of prescription tablets three days prior. The inquest into her untimely death commenced today (Monday, January 13) at Bootle Town Hall, presided over by coroner Johanna Thompson.

The court heard that Semina, aged 12, had taken an overdose of prescription medication shortly after abruptly leaving a police interview at her home in Southport, telling her mother Rachel that she "had enough". The Year 7 student at Stanley High School had allegedly endured months of bullying and harassment following sexual abuse by an older boy in January 2021.

During the inquest proceedings today, Rachel Halliwell, Semina's mother, detailed the interactions between her daughter and the boy, which began in the summer of 2020 when Semina was just 11. She expressed: "She was under a lot of pressure."

Rachel further explained, reported by the Liverpool Echo: "She told me that she tried to put him off several occasions, making excuses up to not meet. He tried different tactics, started to be nasty but that didn't work so he started to be nice again. I could see from their messages that she was terrified when the act happened - just before it."

In a heart-wrenching testimony, a mother recounted the horrific experience her daughter endured. With tears streaming down her face, she revealed: "She said he took her into the woods and he sat her on a tree stump and he took his