Hundreds of mourners gather for teenager's funeral
Published Date:
23 November 2007
AROUND 150 mourners joined a funeral procession in South Yorkshire for Jonathan Matondo who was shot dead in a city park.
Among those taking part were teenagers wearing hooded tops bearing the 16-year-old's picture and the words 'RIP 1991 - 2007' and his street name of Venemous.
Men, women and children sang traditional African songs as they followed the hearse to St Catherine's Catholic church, on Burngreave Road, Sheffield.
As the hearse stopped outside the entrance to the church, Jonathan's mother Therese Mfuilu, embraced the side of the vehicle and chanted: "My baby, my baby" and "never forget" to the coffin inside.
Around 500 mourners followed the coffin into the church singing African songs and many were forced to stand outside as the building filled to capacity.
Jonathan, who was originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, was found with gunshot wounds in a small recreation ground in the Burngreave area of the city on October 17.
A post-mortem examination showed he died from a single gunshot wound to the head
Negus Nelson, 18, of Margate Drive, Sheffield, has been charged with Jonathan's murder and is in custody awaiting trial.
The full article contains 199 words and appears in n/a newspaper.
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Last Updated:
23 November 2007 1:24 PM
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Source:
n/a
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Location:
Yorkshire
