Walsall man charged with murder of Christina Edkins, 16

Phillip Simelane, of Walsall, accused of killing the 16-year-old, spoke only to confirm his name during a 10-minute hearing at Birmingham Crown Court.

He was remanded in custody to a secure mental health unit and will next appear on May 31.

The teenager, of Ladywood, died from a single stab wound to the chest after being attacked on the number nine bus in Hagley Road, Birmingham, on March 7. She was on her way to Leasowes High School, in Halesowen.

Simelane, wearing a blue, white and grey hooded training top, was asked only to confirm his name by the court clerk.

The schoolgirl, who was sitting on the top deck, was attacked at 7.37am as the bus was pulled over at a stop near the busy Five Ways roundabout leading out of the city centre towards Stourbridge.