Two teenagers have pleaded guilty to murdering a 14-year-old boy in a machete attack on a bus in south-east London on 7 January. Kelyan Bokassa, 14, was stabbed a total of 27 times whilst travelling home on the 472 bus in Woolwich. Two 16-year-old boys, who cannot be named due to their age, admitted to Kelyan’s murder when they appeared at the Old Bailey, as well as carrying a bladed weapon.

The two teens both had previous convictions, including possession of a knife in a public place. One of the teens also had a referral order in place at the time of the murder. Their sentencing is set to take place on Friday 25 July. The pair were charged the day after they had been arrested on 15 January after a manhunt by the Met police.

After the incident took place on the bus, emergency services were called to Woolwich Church Street just before 14:30 GMT. Kelyan had suffered a severed femoral artery and died, not long after medics arrived at the scene. CCTV images of the two killers were then issued by Scotland Yard in a public appeal for information. One of the machetes used in the attack was thrown into the River Thames, but was later recovered. 

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As the two boys pleaded guilty in court, Kelyan’s mother could be heard crying in the courtroom. Other relatives could also be heard gasping and crying. Court proceedings were then suspended briefly after one of the teens’ barristers requested a moment to speak with his client following the shocking plea. The teen then returned to the courtroom and confirmed his guilty plea.

At a preliminary hearing, prosecution barrister Tom Little KC stated that Kelyan was sitting at the back of the bus on the upper deck prior to the attack. He added that Kelyan was then attacked by two youths armed with “lengthy machetes”. Little implied the teens knew of Kelyan and where he would be, stating: "It is clear this is not a form of spontaneous incident. The two defendants must have known the deceased was on the bus. They approach him and almost instantaneously, the two of them pull out machetes and attacked the deceased. He is stabbed or attempted to be stabbed on a total of 27 occasions before the defendants made their way off the bus."

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Det Chief Inspector Sarah Lee, who led the Met Police investigation into the murder, said she wanted to express the police force’s “heartfelt sympathies” to Kelyan’s family. She added: "The brutal and senseless attack has deeply impacted his friends, the wider community and everyone that has worked tirelessly to identify, arrest and prosecute those responsible. I hope Kelyan's family can take some solace in this outcome, but I know they remain deeply bereft at the waste of three young lives."

After Kelyan’s death, his mother, Mary, revealed that he had been groomed by gangs from the age of 6. His mother also said that despite Kelyan returning to his studies and them celebrating Christmas together just weeks before his murder, she felt he still had “one foot in the streets”. For this reason, she was “not surprised” upon hearing of his death. During Friday’s hearing, Judge Lucraft implied he would be open to hearing an application which allows the media to report the full identities of the two teens. Kelyan was the first teenager to lose his life to knife crime in 2025.