'Loving and caring' teen refugee took his own life after regretting 'ever coming to UK'
More below 👇
🚚Alex Tekle was just 17 when he was smuggled into the UK in a refrigerated lorry
He died less than a year later in Mitcham, South London, after struggling with alcoholism and his mental health
📰Full story: bit.ly/3pTA38C
🏛️An inquest has heard that during his short time in the UK, Eritrean-born teenager Alex was assaulted at a hostel for asylum seekers and stabbed in a random street attack
🗣️Alex’s father described him as a peaceful boy who was a ‘very loveable and sociable young man and had many friends’
📍He said he didn’t fully understand what had happened to his son after he reached the UK 🇬🇧
📃In a statement, his father said "When he arrived in the UK at the end of 2016 he was so relieved. He missed his family desperately and told his sisters he hoped they would join him in the UK and go to school there. He wanted to find a job and send money to help and support us.”
⛺️The inquest heard that Alex saw women and children die on his journey from Eritrea and lived in a tent in Calais for around a year
🏠After arriving in the UK, Alex stayed at a child’s immigration centre in Kent and later a hostel for adults in London
The coroner heard Alex was then assaulted and became homeless, later developing a serious drinking problem
🏛️Alex’s girlfriend gave a statement in court saying “he said he regretted ever coming to the UK. Alex thought no-one wanted to help him.”
The inquest into his death continues
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