KNIFE TERROR AT THE MALL
»»Three injured in stabbing rampage »»Suspect picked victims at random
HORRIFIED witnesses told how a knifeman randomly stabbed victims during an unprovoked attack in a busy shopping centre yesterday.
The suspect was heard screaming racial abuse as he lunged at people in what police said was an act of terror.
He stabbed three before being wrestled to the ground by officers and tasered.
Armed police had surrounded the Arndale Centre in Manchester, which was put into lockdown as the 41-year-old went on his rampage. Tables and chairs in a Starbucks coffee shop were seen overturned and splattered with blood.
One shopper told how she saw a woman collapse after being stabbed by the suspect, who was dressed in all black.
The witness said: “I heard a woman
DRAMA Police rush to the scene scream. I spun around and saw this guy who had a knife in his hand. It looked like he stabbed her back. There was blood pouring from her and she fell to the floor. I ran as fast as I could and warned others what happened, there was real panic, people screaming.
“The police were there in minutes and we were evacuated. It was like a nightmare. Like something out of a horror film.
“It was awful. I can’t get that image out of my head.”
A store worker caught in the chaos added: “A man was running around with a knife lunging at multiple people, one of which came into my store visibly shaken.
“Security told all retail staff to close their doors and move the public to the back of the stores.”
Shopper Janet Loudon, 21, said: “I came out of work and saw a black man shouting racial slurs like ‘n **** r’ and being very hostile towards an Arndale worker, who was also black. He was swearing and telling the public, ‘I’m going to f**k you up’, repeatedly and he got more and more agitated. He was pointing at the police and Arndale workers
There was blood pouring from her. It was like a nightmare WITNESS ON WOMAN WHO WAS STABBED IN THE BACK
and saying things like, ‘Just because I’m a n **** r.’ We saw a victim slouched at an ATM, which was horrific and she was taken away to be helped.”
Freddie Houlder said he heard “a load of screams” outside the store he was shopping in.
The 22-year-old told how a woman then came in and said: “A guy just ran past the shop and tried to stab me.”
He added: “Luckily, she had quite a thick jacket.
“She thought originally it was a fake knife because of how easily it grazed off but police came in and said it was a real knife and she burst into tears. He was running around going for as many people as possible.”
The three people stabbed, a man in his 50s, a woman aged 19 and another for whom no age was given, were taken to hospital. Two others were hurt and also treated. All but one had been discharged last night, police said.
The suspect, who is thought to be from Manchester, was also taken to hospital and detained.
He was last night being quizzed by anti-terror police. Officers believe he acted as a lone wolf. The suspect had began lunging at shoppers as soon as he arrived at the Arndale Centre, which attracts 41million visitors a year.
He was challenged by two police community support officers but chased after them with the large blade as they radioed for assistance.
Greater Manchester Police Assistant Chief Constable Russ Jackson said the man had been arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of an act of terrorism.
He added: “We do not know the motivation for this terrible attack. It appears random, is certainly brutal and extremely frightening for anyone who witnessed it.”
Jackson said the incident was “bound to bring back memories of the awful events of 2017”, where 22 people were killed at an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena.
Last night, Greater Manchester Police said a 40-year-old man arrested on suspicion of committing a terrorism offence had been compulsorily detained under the mental health act after being assessed by specialist doctors. AS a teen, I spent most Saturdays in the Arndale with my pals – and now my teenage daughters do the same.
It’s a place I always thought they were safe, so yesterday is a sad reminder that my home city is a terror target.
I’d always told my kids it happened in capitals like London or Paris. But the 2017 Arena attack proved I was wrong.
I won’t stop my girls going there but I will worry a lot more and hug them that bit tighter before they leave home.