A GIRL says she accidentally pushed Shukri Abdi into deeper water, shortly before the Somali refugee drowned, an inquest has heard.

Due to legal restrictions, the girl will be referred to as Child One. 

In a witness statement, Child One spoke about Shukri and said: “She was holding my legs at the back. I accidentally pushed her into the deep end. I couldn’t swim like that, I pushed her.

“She thought she could swim but didn’t know how to swim. She got into the water next to me. She was grabbing my hand. Something happened, she went down in the water to get back up, she didn’t make it. We were calling to Shukri to get up. She didn’t get up. We were all crying and shouting. She’s like really small. We were panicking. We were like: no, this cannot happen.”

The other children who witnessed the incident gave evidence via video link but Child One’s witness statement was read out by Joanne Kearsley, the senior coroner for Manchester North. 

Paramedic’s statement

A statement from Gillian Fenton, a paramedic with North West ambulance who attended the scene was also heard at the inquest. 

She said: “No one appeared to be crying or in any state of distress.” 

The paramedic said she wondered whether anyone had attempted to rescue Shukri. Though there were two girls and two boys by the river when she arrived, they did not appear wet. 

She shared that she thought it might have been a hoax when she arrived on the scene. 

In an inquest that took place earlier on this year, it was revealed that a girl had confessed to threatening to kill Shukri before her death. 

No evidence to suggest anything of a criminal nature took place

Still, Det Insp Andrew Naismith said to the inquest that there was no evidence to suggest that anything of a criminal nature took place. 

Naismith also said there was no suggestion that Shukri Abdi was pressured into entering the water. 

Child One’s personal tutor made a statement. 

He said the girl had a very direct speaking style. She would say things like, “I’ll kill you” but he claims this was not said in a malicious way. 

As an example, he said that if Chile One gave him some biscuits, she might say “don’t eat them all or I’ll kill you” in a joking manner. 

Shukri Abdi died in the River Irwell in Greater Manchester in June 2019.  

She arrived in the UK in January 2017 with her mother and four siblings. The family had fled conflict in Somalia. The child was born in a Kenyan refugee camp.

Her family were brought into the country as part of a vulnerable persons resettlement scheme. Refugees on this scheme are some of the most vulnerable and are vetted by the UN.

The inquest continues.