First picture of Yusuf Jatta, 4, who was killed by a car in Leeds as his family mourn loss of ‘happy and much-loved’ boy
Yusuf Jatta died in his mother's arms after he was knocked down outside a doctor's surgery on Saturday
THE devastated family of a four-year-old who was killed by a car have released a picture of their "happy" little boy.
Yusuf Jatta died in his mother's arms after he was knocked down outside a doctor's surgery on Saturday — a day after his father returned from a month-long trip to Africa.
Today the family said in a statement: "Yusuf attended nursery at Hillcrest Academy and was loved by his teachers and was happy there.
"His dad had just returned from a month in Gambia and spent a day with him before this tragic accident.
"Yusuf enjoyed travelling and we visited London and Scotland with him. It is unfortunate that Yusuf's grandparents could not see him.
"The family would like to give special thanks during this difficult time to the staff and management of Hillcrest Academy, the Gambian community in the UK, and the local community in Leeds."
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The driver of the Vauxhall Corsa stopped at the scene outside the Reginald Centre in the Chapeltown area of Leeds.
Temporary Detective Sergeant Mathew Tunney said: "We are doing everything we can to support the family following their loss in such sudden and tragic circumstances.
"We are continuing to carry out enquiries to build up as full a picture as possible of what happened, and would still like to hear from anyone who was in the area and witnessed the collision or the circumstances leading up to it.
"We are particularly keen to speak to the driver of a black or dark-coloured Vauxhall Meriva that was stopped at a red traffic light as we believe he would have had a good view of the incident."
On Sunday Yusuf's uncle Omar Manneh, 42, told how he saw his sister covered in blood from cradling her dying son.
He said: "I didn't witness the accident but I was there immediately afterwards.
"I was going to the neighbourhood shop when I saw my sister covered in blood.
"I saw my little nephew lying down. The ambulance arrived and they were trying to revive him."
He added: "Can you imagine a mother seeing her little boy knocked down?
"I saw the panic in my sister. "She can't do anything about it."
Omar said Yusuf's 11-year-old sister had asked him who she would play with now.
He said: "When I listened to her talking, I thought life can just take things.
"Whenever I saw Yusuf and his mum, he was always active.
"He was a charming boy. He was an intelligent little lad — happy, charming, truly family."
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