Boy, 13, killed after being hit by car in city as family pay emotional tribute to ‘kindest little boy’

THE devastated family of a 13-year-old boy have paid a heartbreaking tribute to the “kindest, cheekiest, witty and clever little boy”.

Thomas Collett was killed in Lichfield, Staffordshire, after he was hit by a Nissan Qashqai on Friday.

The tragedy happened in Ash Grove in the city at around 6.30pm.

The 13-year-old suffered serious injuries from the collision and sadly couldn’t be save by paramedics from West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Police said the Nissan driver stayed at the scene and was known to Thomas and his family.

His family have now paid an emotional tribute to the teenager, saying they would “miss you more than you could ever imagine”.

The family said: “Our darling Tom, you were the kindest, cheekiest, witty and clever little boy anyone would have met, your love for football, Formula One, and your family was completely unmatched.

“Your personality shone through everything you did, from playing football, to your eating habits and wind ups.

“We are going to miss you more than you could ever imagine, God really does take the best ones first, I hope you know how loved you were and how your memory of everyone and everything you loved will live on inside of us forever.”

Staffordshire Police said investigations into the incident continued, with the driver supporting officers with their investigation.

A spokesperson for the force added: “If you saw the collision or have any CCTV, dashcam or doorbell footage of the area at the time, you can get in touch by calling 101, quoting incident 544 of 31 May, or by messaging us using Live Chat on our website.

“You can also contact collision investigators direct by emailing ciu@staffordshire.police.uk.”

Specially-trained officers are continuing to support his family as much as possible at this time.

People who knew Thomas posted tributes to the loved boy on social media.

One said: “Remember Thomas as a little boy coming in to dimbles chippy for his tea he was such a cutie lovely , happy boy , rest in paradise.”

Another wrote: “This is just so heartbreaking my thoughts are with all involved but especially his family and friends. Every parents worst nightmare, rest in peace Tom.”

A third posted: “So sorry for your loss there are no words to take away the grief that you are all going through. Rest in peace Thomas fly high with the angels.”