A young man has pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of a German student who was stabbed to death in Rialto in Dublin.

His teenage friend has already been convicted of murdering Thomas Heinrich in December 2012.

He died after being stabbed three times during a fight outside his apartment in the early hours of December 1st 2012.

Today, his parents described the "crippling depression of his sudden and violent death" and the pain of being robbed of their son and his potential.

Wesley Kelly (20) of St. Anthony's Road, Rialto and his teenage friend, who cannot be named because of his age, stood trial last month.

They were both charged with murdering Thomas Heinrich and assault causing harm to his friend Robert Rinker who says he now suffers from Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The younger of the two was found guilty on both counts, but the jury failed to reach agreement on the murder charge faced by Wesley Kelly.

However, before their sentence hearing today the charge was again put to Mr. Kelly who pleaded not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter.

This was accepted by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and their sentencing is due to be finalised tomorrow.