Four youths face life sentences for murder of Zac Olumegbon near his school in south London Five teenagers were convicted on Monday of killing a 15-year-old boy who was stabbed to death as he arrived at school. Four of the youths were found guilty of murder and one of manslaughter. They will be sentenced next month. The Old Bailey heard that within moments of being hounded down, Zac Olumegbon lay dying on his back in the garden of a house just metres from the school. He had been stabbed four times, two of the wounds piercing his heart. The killers, who were aged between 15 and 17 at the time, killed Olumegbon outside Park Campus School in West Norwood, south London, in July last year. Edward Brown QC, prosecuting, said: "He found himself hounded down and killed. He had only just arrived at his school that morning. He was killed a matter of metres from it." The youths were armed with at least two knives and had deliberately been driven to the school to attack Olumegbon, the court heard. Brown added: "The reality of the events that were to lead to Zac's death is that it had its origin in the dreadful but certain fact of rivalry between young gangs. "Needless posturing that on occasion led to violence and occasion serious violence and death. It was a tragic and terrible waste of a young life." Brown said the defendants were members of the GAS (Guns And Shanks) gang from Brixton. Olumegbon was associated with the rival TN1 (Trust No-One) gang from Tulse Hill. "Zac was a member of it and was known as Little Zac," said Brown. The youths will also be sentenced for wounding another schoolboy in the attack. Judge Giles Forrester lifted a ban on reporting the identities of the defendants, who are all from south London. Helder Demorais, 17, Ricardo Giddings, 17, Jamal Moore, 17, and Kyle Kinghorn, 18, were found guilty of murder and face life terms. Shaquille Haughton, 16, was found guilty of manslaughter. Olumegbon's mother, Shakira, told the court of the pain of losing her youngest child. In a statement to the court, she said: "The scene that confronted me when I reached the school is indescribable. "Even though Zac was young, he touched many lives." She added: "This is our life sentence. It feels like the 15 years I spent raising my son and all the hopes and dreams I had have been in vain. "I never thought I would bury any of my children, let alone my baby boy. "He was snatched away in such a cruel and heartless way." She said her son had attended a conference which was helping him turn his life around. "He told me he wanted to help young people facing the same problems," she said. London Gangs Crime guardian.co.uk © 2011 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds