A man armed with a knife stormed through one of London’s busiest markets and killed one man while seriously injuring two others in the most horrific attack.
East Street Market shoppers were in a state of panic as the man charged through the crowded marketplace, wildly attacking anyone.
Witnesses said he plunged towards passers-by along Walworth Road in a series of seemingly random attacks shortly before 11am on Sunday morning.
Police were called to the market at 10:40 am amid multiple reports of stabbings. Online footage shared by passersby showed one of the victims, who had been given CPR by paramedics as shocked passersby look on. The man, who was in his 60s, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Another two-a man and a female-suffered stab injuries and were taken to hospital, where police await updates on their conditions.
A man, also believed to be in his 60s, has been arrested at the scene. Police have said the incident was not being treated as terrorism and was believed to be related to mental health concerns.
A fabric seller who witnessed the attack from his stall said the man appeared to be stabbing people “willy-nilly”.
The man, 53, who asked not to be named, said: “I just saw a bloke running through the market stabbing people willy-nilly. It seemed completely at random. He went for a few people near me.
“His knife was big. I saw him stab two men. He and they seemed like complete strangers.
“Everyone was screaming and shouting and running. The man was running towards the end of the road. It was about 10.30am so the market was just picking up.
“I went up to the two guys that got stabbed. One of them seemed like he wasn’t in too much danger, but the other one – I knew the minute I saw him that he was in a bad way. I rang the police straight away.”
He said the man who died was in his 60s and did not appear to know the suspect. The other victims were a black man in his mid-50s and a Chinese man, he said.
Benaisa Lourdjane, 57, who has lived in the area for 42 years, claimed he held the suspect down before police arrived.
“Me and a big white guy ran after the man and caught him and held him until the police came.
“I saw him stab a man who passed away. I’ve never seen the knifeman in this market before, and I’ve been living around here for 42 years. I’ve been shaking since it all happened. “Everyone was very scared.”
Another street vendor, who works at his brother’s vegetable stall, said the suspect tried to attack him.
“He tried stabbing me. He was about a metre away from me. I had to run away. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Commander Peter Stevens said: “Tragically, a man lost his life this morning, and officers are working hard to establish exactly what happened and to provide support to his family. My thoughts and sincere sympathies are with them, and with the other people injured.
“Our investigation is at a very early stage. One man was rapidly arrested by officers responding to the incident. At present, although inquiries are ongoing, nobody else is sought.
“The incident is not being treated as terrorism. Inquiries continue, led by dedicated detectives from specialist crime.
“I want to thank those people who have already shared their accounts of what they saw with police. I urge anyone with information or footage, or any witnesses yet to speak with police, to get in touch.”
