A MOTHER whose son was brutally killed next to the River Thames in Oxford has said she prays every day that his killers will face justice.

Harun Jama was found stabbed and bleeding to death under a footbridge in Friars Wharf shortly before 8pm on Wednesday, January 3. The teenager, from Birmingham, was taken to hospital where he later died of his injuries.

More than five months on, nobody has faced justice for killing the boy, who was described by his mother Hibo Fidow as a normal teenager with a passion for football and dreams of becoming an engineer.

The 40-year-old carer has joined detectives, who today relaunch their appeal, to urge anybody with the ‘missing piece of the jigsaw’ to come forward and help close the case.

She said: “I just wanted a good life for my son. I wanted to see him grow up and go to university. He wanted to be an engineer.

“I never thought that something like this would happen to him. Even when I heard it I still didn’t believe it.

“I believe that one day they will find the person who did this. I pray every day that police will find the person who killed my son.”

She described Harun as being a typical 16-year-old boy. He was close with his mother and his siblings and enjoyed playing football and going on the Playstation with friends.

Meanwhile, the team of officers investigating the murder have revealed they may be just a single step away from cracking the case.

DCI Andy Howard, of the force’s major crime unit, is leading the investigation.

He said: “We know there were a lot of people on the towpath down at Friars Wharf that night.

“We’ve spoken to a lot of people who have given us information – but we suspect a lot of people who have spoken to us have more information to give.

“This is a 16-year-old kid who was murdered needlessly in Oxford. I’m certain that people witnessed what happened but have yet to come forward. It’s the missing piece in the jigsaw.”

Mr Howard said the investigation was still very active – with only the lack of an eyewitness stopping justice from being done.

He continued: “We want to appeal to people’s consciences. We know there are people out there who saw this take place.

“The reality is we are one key piece of information away from what we need – and ultimately that will come down to an eyewitness. Somebody or some people saw what happened that night.

“It is a shocking case. It was brutal and needless. There was no reason for Harun to die in this way.

“Think about if this was a member of your family – your son or your brother. How would you feel? What would you expect police to do? And what would you expect people to tell the police?”

Mr Howard encouraged anybody who was in the area to contact the police.

He said: “It is vital we speak to anybody who was in the vicinity of Friars Wharf at the time of Harun's death, especially if they were in the towpath area between Folly Bridge and the black and white old gasworks bridge between 7pm and 8pm.

“If you were in or around Friar’s Wharf that evening, or saw anything which you think could help our investigation, no matter how insignificant it may appear to you, I would ask you to come forward.

“We remain dedicated to finding those who are responsible for Harun’s death and bringing them to justice."

The year was barely under way when Harun was killed just metres from a children’s play area on the evening of January 3.

One person who witnessed the aftermath of the slaying saw runners fighting to save the teenager’s life.

Speaking the next day, he said: “A couple of runners were down there. I got off the bike and ran down and saw they were doing CPR on somebody.

“[Harun] had a leg wound and a larger wound on his chest. There was a lot of blood, right along the path, and his eyes were rolled back in his head. I think he was dead then. I know that there was no pulse.”

An ambulance was called by a member of the public shortly after the incident before paramedics alerted police.

Many living in the area had been unaware of what had happened, but looked on as police cars and officers filled the area from about 8pm that night.

Another man who witnessed part of the incident from a nearby balcony said he saw a chase which led to the footbridge.

After what he describes as a 'confrontation', the witness saw two or three people leaving the area over the bridge as the runners arrived.

The following day, January 4, an enormous police presence remained in the area, cordoning off much of Friars Wharf.

Officers canvassed homes while scene of crime investigators analysed the scene and collected evidence.

A 25-year-old woman and a 33-year-old man, both from Oxford were arrested in connection with the investigation.

The 33-year-old man was charged with murder and drugs offences. However, the murder charge has since been discontinued.

Since then much of the force’s efforts have been less public facing until today's re-launching of the appeal.

Witnesses or those with information about the crime are urged to make contact with police via 101.

People can also add information to the 'major incident public portal' at mipp.police.uk/operation/810.