Father accused of stabbing daughter and her best friend to death

A RELEASED convict has admitted to beating and stabbing to death his eight-year-old daughter and her best friend, authorities in the US say.

Jerry Hobbs was apparently unhappy because his daughter Laura was supposed to be grounded for stealing about $40 (€31) from her mother’s purse but her mother had given in and let her go out to play.

Hobbs, released from prison just last month, went out looking to bring his daughter back home.

On Wednesday, a judge denied bail for Hobbs, 34, after prosecutors said he admitted in videotaped and written statements to beating and stabbing Laura and her best friend, nine-year-old Krystal Tobias. The girls were found dead on Monday in a park in Zion, Illinois. They had more than 30 stab wounds between them and Laura was stabbed in each eye, prosecutors said.

“You can see through the injuries to these two individuals the rage that was exhibited,” prosecutor Jeff Pavletic said. “This was a slaughter of two little girls.”

When Hobbs found the girls, Laura refused to go home, and he beat and stabbed the girls with a small kitchen knife, prosecutors said. Hobbs then allegedly dragged them into the woods and left them side-by-side. Hobbs told investigators that Krystal pulled the knife to defend her friend, and he wrested it away. But prosecutors said they doubt the little girl was carrying a blade.

Hobbs stared at the courtroom floor as Mr Pavletic described the case against him. Public Defender David Brodsky said he had not seen details of the case and could not comment yet, but would assign two capital defenders to represent Hobbs.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 9, but Mr Brodsky said he expects Hobbs will be indicted by a grand jury before then. He also said his office would investigate whether Hobbs’ statements should be admissible in court.

Hobbs has a criminal history dating to 1990 in Texas, including arrests for assault and resisting arrest.

Just last month, he was released from a Texas prison after serving time for an assault in 2001.

He had argued with Laura’s mother, Sheila Hollabaugh, then grabbed a chainsaw and chased neighbours until someone hit him in the back with a shovel, according to prosecutor Rick Mahler in Texas.

He and Hollabaugh, who never married, had three children together.