Murder probe launched after death of man
NEIGHBOURS have described how attempts were made to save a man’s life after he was allegedly stabbed in Wallsend.
Police have launched a murder investigation after a 43-year-old man died in a suspected assault on Monday.
Three male teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of murder and all three have since been released under investigation.
Yesterday two further arrests were made, both male, aged 18 and 16, on suspicion of murder. They both currently remain in police custody.
Emergency services, including police, ambulances and the air ambulance, rushed to St Hilda’s Avenue in the Holy Cross area at around 2.30pm on Monday. They taped off part of the road between St Hilda’s and Sussex Gardens.
Yesterday morning, a car police remained outside a semi-detached house on St Hilda’s Avenue and a white forensic tent had been put up in the garden. An officer was guarding the door to the property.
Around a dozen bunches of flowers had been laid on the path outside the garden and one of them had a message reading “Froggy xxx”.
A woman and a man, who were laying some flowers at the scene, told The Chronicle that they were friends of the family. The woman, who did not want to be identified, said she had witnessed the aftermath of the attack, which she said happened in front of the man’s family members, and tried to help.
She said: “People were trying to help him. Two of the neighbours tried to save his life until the ambulance came and then they took over - but sadly he couldn’t be saved. It wasn’t nice to see.
“I have never slept a wink. It’s a dead quiet estate, it’s one of the quietest estates in the area. I have never seen anything like this before.”
The man, who did not wish to give his name, said: “This is the worst thing I
have known in my life in Newcastle. He was a nice, lovely person. He was outgoing and he would do anything for anyone. He had a heart of gold.”
A neighbour described how she was alerted to the incident when she heard screaming.
She said: “I was in the back garden and I heard screams. It was somebody shouting ‘ring an ambulance.’ There was a lot of police and there was an air ambulance out. There were ambulances and about 10 police cars.
“I was at work until 10pm and as I pulled up the man’s body was being taken away. We were told to wait in the car.
Retired lift engineer Alan Francis has lived in the area for 30 years. The 70-year-old said he heard screaming and shouting before the street was flooded with emergency services.
He said: “It’s terrifying when you think about it. We just thought it was kids carrying on then we realised it was worse.
“We heard screaming and shouting “he’s been stabbed”. We were in the back garden at the time. The next thing we know the helicopter was there and the police vans were there. It’s awful just to think about it, it’s so close to home.
“There’s been little barneys now and then but nothing like this. It’s a quiet neighbourhood. You don’t think it’s going to happen on your street, do you.”
Detective Inspector Louise Jenkins, of Northumbria Police, said: “Firstly, our thoughts go out to the victim’s family and friends at this devastating time.
“A full investigation is under way into the circumstances surrounding what led to this tragic incident. It is early in the investigation however, we don’t believe there is any wider threat to the public. Our officers remain in the area as they continue to follow several lines of enquiry, and I’d encourage anybody with any concerns or information to get in touch.”
■ Anyone with information is asked to contact police via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of their website or by calling 101 quoting log NP-20220622-0535.