Parent's tribute to 'caring son'

The body of 25-year-old Matthew Demko was found in a garage

The family of a 25-year-old who was found murdered in a garage in Surrey have paid tribute to their "caring and thoughtful" son.

Matthew Demko, 25, from Epsom, died from blunt force injuries to the head on 4 April.

His parents Nick and Lorraine said: "We feel immensely proud to be Matt's mum and dad, proud of the person Matt was. Matt was such great fun to be around."

Mr Demko's body was found at premises in Links Road, Ashtead.

A service celebrating his life was held at St George's Church, Barnett Wood Lane, on Monday.

'Immensely proud'

In a statement, Mr Demko's parents said: "You don't always know how your children are when you're not around but in the past few weeks we've learned from people some of the things Matt did that we didn't know about, the times when he helped someone out, when he gave them support, when he lent them some cash if they didn't have any.

"Sometimes reading messages like that can be incredibly hard and other times it helps to know just how much he was loved by everyone who knew him.

"He had the biggest smile and was always laughing. He was very affectionate and a typical greeting from him would be a kiss and a big hug."

They said he was a keen sportsman who was popular and one of life's doers.

Their statement continued: "We would like to thank all Matt's friends for everything they have done since we lost Matt - they really have been amazing.

"We have also had flowers, cards and messages from local people here in Ashtead particularly the parishioners at St George's Church."

A 24-year-old man has appeared in court charged with the murder of Mr Demko.