Neighbours have reacted with shock and horror following the fatal stabbing of a teenager outside his family home in Battersea.

The victim, named locally as 18-year-old Lejean Richards, was repeatedly stabbed in a car park outside a four-storey block of flats where he lived with his mom.

Two men, aged 19 and 27, have been arrested on suspicion of his murder on Tuesday night.

A close relative, who asked not to be named, said Lejean had been working as a delivery driver for Deliveroo.

The man, who claimed to be Lejean's stepfather, said: "He was telling me that he wanted to go back to college and do certain things.

"We were talking about a week ago."

Battersea residents said the capital's knife crime epidemic was "encroaching" on safe areas favoured by the Royals.

One man said he heard screaming and a "big group of black youths" near the murder scene at around the time Lejean was attacked.

The killing happened just 500 yards from Thomas' Battersea school, where Prince George is a pupil.

There was traffic chaos as officers closed several roads around the area where dozens of primary school children could be seen walking to school.

RELATED: Two men arrested as 19-year-old stabbed to death in Battersea

Local resident Wendy Sgamma, 40, who moved to the area from her native South Africa four years ago, said: "The Royal Family chose this area because it was safe.

"It is just unbelievable something like this would happen here. I chose this area because it was safe.

"If there's a problem on the estates it would have been on the other side of the main road.

"It's like it's encroaching on the nice part of Battersea."

Local dad-of-six Ed Williams said he moved to the area to bring up his family away from violence in Hackney. He said: "It's not normally a problem area.

"There's a few Kids just walking and hanging around, but they help elderly people with their shopping bags.

"I've got six kids: of course, it scares me."

Lejean lived in Wolsey Court with his mother and had a criminal past, according to a neighbour who said: "He lived on the other side of the stairwell to me.

"His mum is lovely. I think his heart was in the right place, but he had problems before."