Gabriel Stoyanov: Teens jailed for killing man who 'annoyed' them

Gabriel Stoyanov's family said he was "easy going, compassionate and always ready to help others"

Two teenagers have been jailed for murdering a man who "annoyed" them on a bus.

Gabriel Stoyanov, 21, was fatally stabbed in the chest after getting off the 181 bus in Bromley, south-east London, on 4 November 2022.

A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named because of his age, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 15 years.

Alfie Kibble, 18, of south-east London, was jailed for life with a minimum term of 14 years and nine months.

A 15-year-old received six years and eight months for manslaughter.

All three, who claimed they acted in self-defence, had been convicted after a trial at the Old Bailey in August.

Sentencing the teenagers at the same court, Judge John Hillen said the motive seemed to be that they were annoyed at the victim's "boorish behaviour on a bus".

The court had heard that Mr Stoyanov, a business studies undergraduate, had been out drinking with a friend and had tried to engage with the defendants on the 181 bus home.

He had flicked the ear of the 17-year-old and punched him in the stomach, but without much force, before being taken off the bus by his friend.

'Untimely death'

The defendants got off the bus two stops later, fetched weapons and lay in wait for Mr Stoyanov outside a takeaway restaurant.

Kibble, from Bexley, swung a motorcycle chain at him - but missed - and the 15-year-old threw a bottle, before the 17-year-old stabbed the victim in the chest with a knife, CCTV footage played to the court showed.

The youths ran away and Mr Stoyanov was taken to hospital where he died the next day.

Judge Hillen said Mr Stoyanov had been described by his loved ones as "easy going, compassionate and always ready to help others".

"He was the joy of his family and his untimely death has devastated them," the judge added.

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