THE MOTHER of a man stabbed to death in his home over a drugs debt has paid tribute to her ‘good, kind-hearted’ son.

Michael Keen, 42, was stabbed to death by Daniel Bamford in his home at Hazel Avenue, Darwen, on August 25.

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Bamford was found guilty of manslaughter by a jury at Preston Crown Court and is due to be sentenced later this year.

In an emotional family statement Mr Keen’s mother spoke about how her son had turned to drugs having been bullied as a child and he protected his family from ‘the horror of that world’.

She said: “I want people to know the real Michael and not just as the drug user that he has been painted to be.

“Michael was my only son and the first boy at that time for our family.

“Growing up Michael was spoilt by us all. He was always a small, shy and timid boy. He had bright ginger hair, glasses and a patch over his eye.

“This just made him a target for the bullies at school. He couldn’t stand up against them so instead of trying to fight them he befriended the bullies, probably the worst thing he could have done. It was this trait that got Michael involved in drugs.”

Mr Keen’s mum said working as a kitchen fitter with his uncle had given him the opportunity of getting away from drugs but he had slipped back into that world.

She said: “Michael didn’t want to be a drug addict, he woke up each day wanting to stop, but the power that the drugs have on your body can take over.

“Drugs were something that we had never experienced in our family, we didn’t understand that world.

“Michael never dragged us into it.

“He would distance himself from us and tried to keep us away from all the horror. He would ask us for money and to sub him here and there but until the weeks leading to his death it was only for small amounts.

“Michael was never an aggressive person and hated violence. But it was this world and violence that ultimately took him from us.”

Mr Keen’s family were present throughout the trial and his mother thanked the police and Crown Prosecution Service for bringing them a sense of closure.

She added: “The injuries he had to suffer is still something I cannot bring myself to listen to.

“No-one should ever lose their child, but no-one will be able to understand how losing one in this way will affect our family.

“At the end of each day

we have had to go home and try and get on with life as normal.

“This verdict has given us some closure on the whole tragic incident.

“But our family will never see Michael again.

“We all have our memories of Michael, little things that will always make us remember him and smile, but that’s all we will ever have now.

“Our lives will never be the same again.”