Vigil for 14-year-old boy shot dead in Woolwich

The mother of a 14-year-old boy who was shot dead in south-east London has told a community vigil that he was a "beautiful, gentle soul" who "lifted people up without even trying".

The tribute to Eghosa Ogbebor was read out on behalf of his mother at a service at New Wine Church in Woolwich on Thursday evening.

The schoolboy was killed in a stairwell, close to Lord Warwick Street, on the afternoon of 2 April.

His mother told the vigil that "his happiness was infectious" and he was "the kind of person who made the world light up, just by being in it."

Around 150 members of the local community gathered for the service of prayers, hymns and tributes.

They were told about Eghosa's love of music and football, and how he had been considering a career in either medicine or computer science.

Several of his young friends shared their memories, with one saying he missed "your smile and your funny jokes" while another remembered him laughing at his 10th birthday party at McDonald's.

"He is the first of our friends to be taken from us, and I hope he will be the last," he added.

One teenage girl described her friend's death as "senseless".

"Fourteen years is nothing. Fourteen is too short a time to be gone," she said.

A 16-year-old boy from Romford in east London has been charged with Eghosa's murder and is due to face trial in January.

The Old Bailey heard he is alleged to have shot Eghosa in a stairwell during a chase, and that Eghosa was also armed.

Pastor Mike Leader, who chairs the Greenwich Church Leaders Forum, told the congregation: "Sadly, this is the third such vigil for a young man I have attended in Woolwich in the last 18 months.

"The most we can do is gather around the family and support them in their shock and grief," he added.

Eghosa's death comes after unrelated fatal attacks on two teenage boys, Daejaun Campbell, 15, and Kelyan Bokassa, 14, just months apart in the same borough.

Daejaun was stabbed in the street in September 2024, while his friend Kelyan was attacked by two teenagers armed with machetes on a bus in January 2025. Both boys had been groomed by gangs.

Kolise Uwagboe, who has set up an online fundraising page for Ogbebor's family, told those assembled at the vigil that everyone must "re-sensitise ourselves to what is going on".

Addressing Eghosa's family directly, she told them: "We share in this pain with you and we will not rest until Eghosa has justice."

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