Supporters of a campaign to find out what really happened to a West Drayton student found dead in the Thames more than two years ago staged a demonstration outside Scotland Yard on Saturday, May 13.

The demonstration, involving an estimated 50 people, stepped up the Justice for Ricky Reel campaign and will be followed by a meeting with police and MPs in the House of Commons on June 14.

The campaign is led by Sukhdev Reel, who is convinced that her 20-year-old son Ricky, whose body was found in the Thames in Kingston a week after he was last seen on a night out with friends on October 14, 1997, was the victim of a racial killing.

Mrs Reel condemned the police for refusing to search for her son until he had been missing for more than 24 hours because he was over 18, despite being informed that he had been a victim of a racial attack when he was last seen.

Although police originally concluded that Ricky had fallen into the river and drowned, an inquest at the beginning of November last year recorded an open verdict.

'We want to ensure that Ricky's killers are caught, but we don't even know whether the police are still investigating,' said Mrs Reel, who has led the campaign for two years.

'My children are asking how their brother died.

'We've put our lives on hold and we can't move on until we find out who killed my son.

'They could kill again and they have to be stopped.'

John Grieve, head of Scotland Yard's racial crime task force, made an appeal for fresh information in March.

A spokesman for Scotland Yard said he was unable to comment on the progress of the investigation.

A CD, containing 11 tracks contributed by bands such as Asian Dub Foundation and Stereo Nation, has been compiled to raise funds for the campaign because it has not been granted any form of legal aid.

It is available for £10 from the following address: Justice for Ricky Reel, c/o SMG Unity, PO Box 304, Southall, Middlesex UB2 5YR.