Alex McLean, the uncle of 22-year-old Tim McLean, speaks about his nephew. (CBC)

The family of a young Winnipeg man who was stabbed to death aboard a Greyhound bus spoke publicly Saturday for the first time since his slaying, describing him as a little guy with a big heart who saw the good in everyone.

Alex McLean, the uncle of 22-year-old Tim McLean, said his nephew, who was known as Timmy to his friends and Tim Jr. to his family, was a "stubborn soul yet a kind one."

"He was a little guy with a heart bigger than you can know. He made friends effortlessly, disliked no one and accepted everyone for who they were," Alex McLean said in a prepared statement in Winnipeg, surrounded by tearful family members.

He described his nephew, who was killed late Wednesday, as a charmer and free spirit who spent his life travelling, meeting new people and "always saw the good in everyone."

Tim McLean, shown in a photo taken from his MySpace page, was heading home to Winnipeg when he became the victim of a horrific slaying on a Greyhound bus.

"He had the most infectious giggle, you could hear him laughing a mile away. it didn’t matter what kind of day you were having, because when you heard him laugh you couldn’t help but join in," Alex McLean said.

Tim McLean had taken a job with the Red River Exhibition and then went to work in Edmonton, but had decided to return home.

Alex McLean said his nephew had been looking forward to spending time with family and friends in Winnipeg.

"We are suffering our loss. This is obviously a most difficult time for us," McLean said, asking that the media and public respect the family's privacy.

Witnesses said Tim McLean got on the bus in Edmonton, while his attacker came aboard in Brandon and sat away from the victim toward the front of the bus. After a short cigarette break, however, the attacker moved his belongings and chose a seat beside the young man.

McLean was stabbed repeatedly by the man beside him with a large hunting knife and then beheaded, witnesses said.

Vince Weiguang Li, 40, of Edmonton has been charged with second-degree murder in McLean's killing.