Family pay tribute to "good soul" Tsvetomir Genov

Following today’s sentencing, the family of Tsvetomir Genov have issued this moving tribute and photos:

“It is nearly one year since our first-born awesome boy was taken from us. It is nearly a year since his life was taken too soon. He was left with no chance to be saved and died tragically after this awful knife attack. His murderer has been found guilty and sentenced, but nothing can change the fact that TG is no longer here. He lives in our hearts and memories, but he is not here.

“Life is not the same without him. We thought the day we were told of his death was the hardest day of our lives, but it was even harder to see him lying in the coffin, to go to his funeral. There are no words to describe the feeling of seeing your child like this. To bury your child is not right. It is horrible and painful and it should not happen. Nothing is the same without him.

“TG had just started his life. He was just 20 years old. He was adventurous, independent, charming and had a good soul. He had dreams and plans which will now never come true. It is hard to accept that we, his family, will never see him again. His little boy, just 16 months old will never see his Daddy again, never hear his Daddy’s voice. He will never play with his Daddy, get advice from his Dad or grow up with his Dad. We fear he might not remember him as he was so young when he was taken from him.

“None of us will see his smile again or hear his laughter again. A big part of our hearts has been taken and will never be replaced. It is just heart-breaking. It is not fair and it is not right. We all loved him so much and we really hope that he knows that, and knows that we will all look after his little boy. We are so proud of him. We miss and love him so much and the huge holes in our hearts will never be filled.”