THE parents of a 15-year-old boy who was found hanged at his Birmingham home after he was allegedly bullied on Facebook have spoken about the tragedy for the first time.

Robert and Tracy Mullaney believe their son Tom was the victim of a new type of bullying where abuse written in front of an on-line audience made him “snap”.

They claimed the virtual arena was a place where teenagers could declare “open season” on each other and just one word aimed at another user could quickly escalate into a tirade with others chipping in.

Speaking for the first time from their Bournville home, surrounded by photos of a smiling Tom, they told how they still expected to see the Kings Norton Boys’ schoolboy come down the road on his BMX.

Robert revealed his son had a “short fuse” but this was improving.

And he said that, notwithstanding the alleged bullying, he believed his son’s death was an accident.

The last time they saw him was as they left for a parenting night course, where they were learning how to help him. As they went everything appeared normal – Tom was on Facebook, with the TV and music on in the background.