It is now more than 20 years since Sophie Hook was murdered.
The seven-year-old from Great Budworth was taken from a tent in the garden of her uncle’s house nearby and raped and killed by Howard Hughes.
Her body was found by dog walker Gerry Davies, who is now in his 70s, on the beach near the paddling pool at Llandudno’s North Shore in July 1995.
Hughes was later given a minimum 50-year jail term.
The decades since the brutal crime have done nothing to alleviate Mr Davies’ anguish at finding the body, which he initially mistook for a tailor’s dummy, the Daily Post reported.
“I’ll never forget finding her,” he said.
“Nothing like this had ever happened in Llandudno before. I was so shocked and upset but could do nothing about it.
“I tried therapy at the beginning, but it didn’t help.
“My wife has had to put up with a lot over the years.”
Sophie and her family were visiting relatives in Llandudno to celebrate her cousin’s birthday.
Following her death, a brass plaque was erected on the beach in her memory.
Llandudno Town Council recently restored the plaque, which had become badly corroded.
Mr Davies said it was important for the town to remember Sophie.
“She was just a little child,” he said.
“We mustn’t forget her. Her murder affected everybody at the time.
“It’s good that Llandudno Town Council have renovated it and are looking after it.”
A spokeswoman for the town council said: “We’ve renovated the brass plaque as it had been exposed to the elements and needed to be refurbished.”
