Amid the national lockdown, London experienced an “abhorrent night” (in the words of the Metropolitan police) with one man killed and nine injured, with two reportedly in a “life-threatening” condition.
Five separate stabbing attacks took place across a two hour period (7 – 9 pm) in the Croydon area (south London) on Friday night (February 06) with police saying there’s no link between the crimes.
The man killed is said to be in his twenties. His body was found in a house in Wisbeach Road, Croydon, along with another injured man who was taken to hospital before police arrived.
Eight other men were reported to have been stabbed in separate attacks, leaving two of them in a life-threatening condition.
Meanwhile, homicide detectives have launched a murder investigation following the Wisbeach Road stabbing.
Detective Superintendent Nicky Arrowsmith of the Metropolitan Police said that London has witnessed a number of “completely abhorrent violent altercations [on Friday night], including one that has tragically resulted in a loss of life”.
Meanwhile, Labor MP for the Croydon North constituency, Steve Reed, wrote in a tweet that the “absolutely horrific news” would “devastate our community”.
— Steve Reed (@SteveReedMP) February 6, 2021 ">http://
Absolutely horrific news that will devastate our community - thoughts with all those injured, and with the police and medical staff dealing with the situation https://t.co/nYcPAdnAfg
— Steve Reed (@SteveReedMP) February 6, 2021
Crime has increased in London despite repeated lockdowns over the past 11 months, with 288 firearms incidents recorded in 2020, an increase of 22 on the year before.
Meanwhile, crime in the UK as a whole is also on the rise with 6.43 million offences registered in 2019/2020, an increase of 130 thousand on the year before.
At a broader level, overall crime in the UK has been on the rise since 2014.