Family mourn teenager murdered at London bakery

Friends and family of a teenage boy murdered the day after his 16th birthday paid tribute to his memory today.

Jimmy Mizen died during a frenzied attack in a bakers' shop in south east London yesterday morning.

He was the 13th teenager to be killed in London this year.

Mr Mizen died in his brother's arms from serious neck injuries after a male youth smashed his way into The Three Cooks Bakery in Hither Green.

Media reports said Mr Mizen, one of nine children, may have died tried to intervene when the youth got angry after being told to leave.

Witness Matthew Fletcher told the BBC how the attacker had used a sign to force his way in.

"You could see him with a sign, smashing the shop door, kicking it through, he's forced his way into the shop and he's run behind the counter and from what I could see he was hitting somebody with the sign."

Police are searching for the youth, who ran away from the scene. Officers believe Mr Mizen may have known his attacker but do not think his death was gang-related, the BBC reported.

Mr Mizen's family attended a service at Our Lady of Lourdes church in nearby Lee where a two-minute silence was held.

After the service his parents paid tribute to their son as they hugged their other children outside the church.

"Jimmy is such a dear, dear young fellow," his father Barry told Sky television.

"We're a decent family just going about its daily business."

His mother Margaret said she felt sorry for the killer's parents.

"I don't feel anger, I just feel sorry for the parents, because we've got lovely memories of Jimmy. They will have such sorrow about their son... We've got wonderful memories of Jimmy that will go on for ever."

School friend Conor O'Hehir told the BBC Mr Mizen was a "lovely person." He said he would never forget "seeing him at school, playing games with him, all those primary school games."

Other friends and strangers paid tribute to him on the Facebook social networking site, leaving messages on special "RIP Jimmy Mizen" page.

"Nowhere in London is safe anymore. I pray they catch the thug who did this. Rest in peace Jimmy," wrote Nina Ammundsen, who said she was a regular customer of the bakers where he died.