A MOTHER whose daughter was stabbed to death has appealed for information that will lead police to her killer.

Marion Kitchen's daughter Sarah Melia received fatal knife wounds at home in Catherine Street West, Horwich, on January 14, 2008, suffering a punctured lung, diaphragm and liver.

The young mum was found in a pool of blood by her then 15-year-old daughter on arrival home from school at 3.30pm and was later pronounced dead.

Sarah's brother Mark Kitchen was acquitted of murder at a third trial after the first two were aborted at a cost to the taxpayer of a combined £95,000.

He is now estranged from the family and said to live in Tonge Moor.

Now, eight years on from her daughter's death, Mrs Kitchen is reaching out to the public in the hope that someone will come forward and provide the breakthrough detectives need to solve the case.

Mrs Kitchen, aged 62, of Halliwell, said: "I will never give up as long as I have got breath in my body.

"Another year of sadness if how we feel about Sarah not being here in our lives.

"Whoever did this needs to be brought to justice. This is our goal.

"There's nothing we can do about it and we are no nearer now than we were then.

"We don't know of any reason why somebody would murder her and we want to appeal to the public to help us, however small your information may be.

"Someone, somewhere, knows something.

"Think of her children having their mum taken from them.

"Think of her family as we try to make sense of it all."

Ms Melia, aged 34, was divorced from her children's father and was not working at the time she was killed.

Her children are now aged 23 and 19.

Mrs Kitchen said: "Sarah would be so proud of both of them.

"But she has missed her childrens' 18th and a 21st birthdays.

"We want to put Sarah to rest and get justice for her especially so they can get on their lives.

"We miss her so much. Every day we're thinking of her and we're forever talking about her.

"We still celebrate her birthday every year on November 14 — we come together and remember the good times."

While the case has not been closed, Mrs Kitchen said the police will not begin actively investigating Ms Melia's murder again without fresh evidence.