Hammersmith stabbing: 39 people under investigation
Thirty-nine people arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a stabbing in west London have been released but remain under investigation .
A man in his 30s was seriously injured in the incident on Fulham Palace Road, Hammersmith, in the early hours of Monday morning.
The Metropolitan police said 39 people were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder at a property near the scene and taken into custody at several police stations.
Police said 20 males and 15 females, aged between 16 and 22, were released under investigation while two 18-yearold men and two boys aged 16 and 17 were released on bail.
The force was called to reports of a stabbing in the street shortly before 1am. The victim had been chased by a number of male and female suspects following an altercation in a shop, police said.
Supt Mark Lawrence said: “What appears to have been a minor argument has resulted in a man sustaining life-threatening injuries. Officers were quickly on the scene and provided him with first aid prior to the arrival of our colleagues in the LAS [London ambulance service]. He has been taken to hospital where he remains in a stable condition.
“Whilst it is unusual for so many people to be arrested in the early stages of an investigation such as this, due to a lack of cooperation and the necessity of securing essential evidence following a serious assault, this action was appropriate.”
A spokesman for London ambulance service said: “Officers and LAS attended. A man, believed to be in his 30s, was found with stab injuries. He was treated at the scene by officers and paramedics and then taken to hospital.
His injuries have been assessed as lifethreatening.”
Neighbours of the flat in Greyhound Road in Hammersmith, where the arrests are believed to have been made, said a group of people were outside at about 11pm on Sunday.
One woman said they were in their late teens or early 20s and the atmosphere appeared to be “quite relaxed and chilled”. “We just heard normal talking. It sounded like squealing girls like you get on a night out,” she said.
Her friend, who is visiting London for New Year’s Eve, saw police officers in the street after the stabbing. “It was a bit mad,” he said. “I woke up about 3am and there was about 25 police officers down here and about 30 or so people – some handcuffed.”
Mason El Hage, 22, said he heard noise and dogs barking at about 1.30am and looked outside believing it was a drugs raid. “I have never seen something like that in my life. It was very extreme in terms of the amount of people involved,” he said.
He added: “Three riot vans rocked up and about 50 police officers marched down the road, went into the house next door and brought around 30 to 40 people outside. They lined them up and interrogated them for about an hour.”
He said the group, including young men and women, were arrested in single file in a “very, very swift operation”.