Hundreds of people gathered for the funeral of an 18-year-old who was murdered while on the way to meet his girlfriend.
Owen Dunn was approached and stabbed during the journey and later died from his injuries. Since his death on Sunday, December 4, his family have pledged to campaign to tackle youth knife crime.
A 14-year-old suspect, who can not be named for legal reasons, has been charged with his murder and remains in custody.
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On Friday, Owen's family were joined by hundreds of mourners to say their final goodbye to him at his funeral in Swindon, Wiltshire. Kingsdown Crematorium was fully packed to remember the life of the "cheeky, mischievous, and food-loving young man."
The funeral began with Owen’s family and closest friends, including parents Zoe Mitchell and Graham Dunn, and brother Luke, gathering at their house and sombrely marching alongside him out of Penhill together for one last time.
After completing the walk from Penhill Drive to St Peter’s Church, the group then travelled by car to Kingsdown Crematorium for the service, where there was already a large crowd gathered. As he arrived, with his family in tow, Owen was met by a wall of his loved ones, many of which were wearing smart black outfits with a splash of red after his beloved football team Liverpool FC.
Others had badges, ties and other items of clothing bearing the red branding for Owen’s World, a Community Interest Company set up in Owen’s name and memory. One particularly poignant moment saw Owen’s coffin carefully removed from the hearse and hoisted onto the shoulders of his pallbearers while members of the family released live doves into the air.
The chapel and adjacent overflow room quickly filled to capacity with dozens more people standing outside to watch. The ceremony itself was packed full of emotional moments, with a live performance of Justin Bieber’s Ghost performed by two of Owen's loved ones.
Other memories were shared about a "troublesome" six-year-old Owen at a family party stealing strawberries out of champagne glasses when he thought no-one was looking. The crowd then listened to a recording of the song Owen’s friend, Jay Randell wrote for him following his death, before it was finally time to say goodbye.
In a statement provided by Owen’s family, they expressed how grateful they were for the support they’d received. They said: "Today we lay to rest our beautiful Owen. This has been a long and difficult time for the whole family.
“We would again like to thank every single person who has donated towards Owen’s funeral. Without your help, today would not have been possible and we couldn’t have given him the send-off he deserved. Thank you also for the well wishes, messages, cards and heartfelt condolences. It has been a great comfort to us all.
“We will always love you, Owen. Owen’s world forever.”
The 14-year-old charged with his murder entered no plea at his last hearing and no application for bail was made. The teenager, from Swindon, was remanded into secure accommodation.
A pre-trial and preparation hearing was set for February 24 at Bristol Crown Court.
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