The mother of four children who were killed in a petrol bomb attack on their home in 2017 has died from injuries sustained in the fire.

Michelle Pearson, 37, was seriously burned in the attack that killed her four children, Demi, Brandon, Lacie and Lia, at their house in Walkden in Salford, Greater Manchester, in December 2017.

Writing on Facebook on Monday, Pearson’s mother, Sandra Lever, said: “Sadly last night, after a hard 20 months of fighting our beautiful Michelle gained her wings and went to join her babies.”

In May last year, Zak Bolland and David Worrall, then 23 and 25, were given life sentences for the murder of the four children in the arson attack, which was part of a feud with the victims’ older brother, Kyle Pearson, then 17, who escaped the fire.

The trial heard that at about 5am on 11 December 2017, the men removed a fence panel from the garden of the mid-terrace house, smashed a kitchen window and threw in two lit petrol bombs.

The fire spread to block the only exit from the first floor to the ground floor as the Pearson family slept upstairs. Demi Pearson, 15, her brother Brandon, eight, and sister Lacie, seven, who were sleeping in a front bedroom, died in the blaze. Their youngest sister, Lia, three, died in hospital two days later.

Michelle Pearson was put into an induced coma after suffering 75% burns to her body. In February this year, she was filmed outside a hospital releasing heart-shaped balloons in a tribute to her children. She appeared in a wheelchair, with a tracheostomy tube in her neck and casts on both of her legs.

In June, Lever said her daughter’s health had taken a turn for the worse. “We have been reluctant to share Michelle’s journey over the past few months as we have been focusing on getting her better,” she posted on Facebook.

“Also trying to keep away from the public eye to allow Michelle and the family to grieve. However, what people didn’t know is that in fact this has been the most challenging time for Michelle and the family.

“Michelle’s health has deteriorated in the past 10 weeks, Michelle is still in critical health and still remains in hospital until further notice.”

During the trial, the jury was told of at least five occasions when Michelle Pearson had called the police in the two weeks leading up to the attack, as an argument raged between her son Kyle and Bolland. The prosecution said “tit-for-tat attacks” had resulted in her windows being smashed and a wheelie bin outside her house being set on fire.

Bolland and Worrall were each handed four life sentences, with the former told he would serve a minimum term of 40 years and the latter serving a minimum of 37.

Bolland’s girlfriend, Courtney Brierley, 20, was accused of encouraging and assisting the two men with their crimes. She was found guilty of four counts of manslaughter and was given a 21-year sentence.

Both Bolland and Worrall were convicted of the attempted murder of Pearson and Greater Manchester police (GMP) said they would be reviewing the investigation and consulting with the Crown Prosecution Service in light of her death.



Det Supt Lewis Hughes from GMP said the force had been informed on Sunday of Pearson’s death. “As the senior investigating officer for the investigation into the fire, I know first-hand how devastating the death of her four children was for Michelle and the news of her passing is incredibly tragic,” he said. “I would like to extend my sincere condolences to Michelle’s loved ones at this terrible time.”