via Zim teenager stabbed to death in London – NewZimbabwe 10/01/2016
A 16-YEAR-OLD boy who was stabbed to death after a ‘row about a tracksuit’ at a friend’s 16th birthday party at a social club in north east London Saturday night is Zimbabwean, Charles Munashe Kutyauripo, New Zimbabwe has established.
Paramedics and police were called to Ashton Playing Fields in Woodford, North London, at 9.40pm.
The teenager was found with stab wounds and taken to hospital but he died in casualty.
A murder investigation has been launched and no arrests have been made so far.
Meanwhile, mourners are gathered in Romford.
Charles, a former King Solomon Academy student was attending college in Barking studying business.
A friend said: “He was someone who you could always have fun with and all the time you were with him you knew it would be a laugh because he was so funny.
“He was really nice and when I heard what happen my whole world was ripped apart.
“I was going crazy, crying and screaming, I didn’t know what to do, I was blaming everyone who was there.
“I rushed down to the party as soon as I found out what happened.
“Charlie had borrowed a tracksuit from a boy and had not returned it and that was what the argument was about.
“It was just a Nike or Adidas normal tracksuit. I can’t believe this has happened.”
She added Charlie had a big family and is thought to have a girlfriend.
Jodeci Joseph used to be deputy head boy of King Solomon and was a few years older than the victim as he laid flowers close to the scene.
He said: ‘I used to look after some of the younger students and he was one I was kind of a role model for so I wanted to lay some flowers, it seemed the right thing to do.
“It’s such a terrible thing to have happened, he was nice boy, very friendly and very sociable.
“He used to sometimes come to basketball club at the school and got on with everyone.
“Woodford is thought of a safe quiet area, I can’t believe this has happened.”
It is thought the youngster, from Collier Row, Romford, was stabbed because he hadn’t returned a tracksuit to one of his attackers from a rival gang.
One neighbour who lived near the playing field said: ‘I heard yelling in the field at around 9.45pm, then saw some teenagers run off, then the police came.
‘It’s very worrying that this has happened, this is a quite area and nothing like this happens here.’
Detectives from the Homicide and Major Crime Command are investigating under Detective Chief Inspector Ken Hughes.
A confrontation began outside the club between four male youths and the victim, who was alone.
One of the males then stabbed the victim before all four made off on foot towards Chigwell Road.
Other people at the party came to help the victim before police and paramedics arrived.
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