Boy, 17, Dies After Brawl Outside Birthday Party

Boy, 17, Dies After Brawl Outside Birthday Party

A boy of 17 has died after getting involved in a fight outside a friend's 16th birthday party.

George Verrier died after sustaining a serious head injury following a 'mass brawl' after the party in Bromley, south-east London.

The event had been held by the teen's friend, Brit School pupil Madison Moran, a dance student at the performing arts school previously attended by Adele and Amy Winehouse.

According to the Telegraph, Scotland Yard said around 20 people were involved in the fight, which began as guests left the party.

George was given first aid by police officers who were called to the scene, but was allowed to leave after he said he did not want to go to hospital. He was found dead later that morning at an address half a mile away.

Madison's dad told the paper that the party had been 'well organised' with guests wearing wristbands for entry.

"We had a marquee in the back garden. There were about 100 guests and they all had wristbands with someone checking them on the door," Cornelius Moran, 47, said. "We didn't have any alcohol, they were all just having a good time dancing."

He said that he has no idea what happened after everyone left at 12.30am.

"I did my best to look after everybody at the party, but this didn't happen until afterwards and it happened in the next street," he said. "The first we knew of it was the next day when we saw the police had cordoned off an area up the road from our house and then we saw on Facebook what had happened to George. We were just in shock. My daughter was inconsolable. We just can't believe what has happened."

He said Madison will never celebrate her birthday again as all she will think about is what happened to George.

The family's neighbours told reporters they had been warned the party was going ahead, but that it had turned into a 'melee' when the guests left.

"We all knew the party was going to happen and we were all given flyers. It was extremely well organised and there were bouncers," one resident told the Telegraph.

"It started at eight and was over by 12.30, as they said it would be. Then it all came to a crescendo after 12.30. It was just a melee."

The neighbour said she estimated the number of people involved in the fight was around 150, higher than the figure given by the police.

"It was like a pack mentality. I'm sure they're all nice individually, but together it was just horrible," she said. "They can't all have come from the party because there were too many of them. But these days, with Facebook, it's so easy to find out that something like this is happening."

Scotland Yard said a 17-year-old boy had been arrested in connection with the incident.

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