A 17-year-old boy has admitted killing a man in a rush hour attack at a London railway station.
John Francis Breen, 53, was found unconscious after the assault in Stratford, east London, on October 27 last year.
Mr Breen was rushed to hospital but died from serious head injuries.
The boy appeared before the Old Bailey and pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
A 15-year-old boy admitted assaulting the same victim causing him actual bodily harm during the attack at Stratford Railway Station in east London.
Both youths had been charged with murder but prosecutor Mukul Chawla QC accepted the pleas after careful consideration.
The teen, who are both originally from Romania, spoke only to confirm their names and to enter their guilty pleas.
The prosecutor told the court that the murder charge should lie on file.
He said that the evidence in the case came from "fractured and partial" eyewitness accounts and "patchy" CCTV footage.
The critical moments were captured on film but at a distance. Judge Mark Lucraft QC said he would adjourn sentencing.
At the time, witnesses told the Standard that the Londoner suffered a “brutal beating” on an Overground platform and may have sustained further injuries falling down stairs.
The boys had been with a group of youths who were hanging around Westfield Shopping Centre.
They got into an argument with Mr Breen on the escalator, and he threw the first punch at the older defendant before being attacked by at least two of the gang.
Charges against two other youths, aged 14 and 15 at the time, were dropped in December.
The attack sparked “total chaos” according commuters as some parts of the station were closed so medics could reach Mr Breen.
The boys were granted bail under strict conditions, including reporting regularly to a police station and cooperating with probation services.
The older boy was warned he faced a "substantial" prison sentence.
Sentencing will take place at the Old Bailey on May 20.
