Knife crimes to be tackled as two boys are arrested over stabbing two girls.
As we see a rise in violence crimes across the UK, new work to crack down on knife crimes is now progress as the news came out over the stabbing of two girls in South London.
The latest in Knife Crimes
The latest crime statistics are now on the rise, mainly in London. It comes after the story emerged of four teenage boys in South London who have been arrested after the stabbing of two young girls. The boys all aged between 16 and 17 are now in custody after being arrested on suspicion of murder, when the call came in at around 16:41pm on Sunday 25th April to Norwood Road, SE27 where the crime took place.
The two girls were taken to the local hospital, reports have said that the younger victim’s condition has now been assessed as serious, but stable. The second victim’s injuries do not appear to be life-threatening.
Detective Sergeant Rob Merrett, Central South Command Unit, said: “This is a shocking incident involving two young female victims, one of whom remains seriously ill in hospital. It has understandably caused considerable alarm in the community.
Knife crimes have always been a Number 1 issue
Whilst the proportion decreased, the number of homicides where a knife or sharp instrument was involved increased by 2% in the year ending March 2020 (from 250 to 256 offences). The number of homicides involving the use of a knife or sharp instrument in London increased from 67 to 86, a 28% increase.
This news comes shortly after the story of Fares Maatou emerged. On Friday afternoon, 14-year-old Fares Maatou was stabbed to death outside a pizza restaurant in Newham, east London.
His death was the 33rd homicide in London this year and 24 of those victims were killed with a knife.
A 14 year old boy has now been arrested and charged with the murder of Fares Maatou and another 15-year-old boy is being held in police custody. Both had been arrested on suspicion of murder during the weekend. As well as this, another two boys, both aged 15, have also been arrested over the killing and have been bailed until May.
What now?
The Police have now issued a statement that they plan to crack down on knife crimes. They will be launching a week-long crackdown on knife crime – Operation Sceptre.
Officers will carry out weapons sweeps and people will be able to dispose of knives in amnesty bins across the country from Monday. There is also a plan for Londoners to hand in knives found at 12 police stations across the city.
The campaign will also see officers working with schools to discourage young people from carrying knives. There will also be Metal detectors which will be set up at transport hubs, along with drug detection dogs, the Met Police said.
Commander Alex Murray, the Met’s violence lead, said: “This operation is an intensification of the work officers are already doing on a daily basis to tackle knife crime and remove dangerous weapons from the streets, and last year we saw a 26% reduction in violent crime across London.
“We are absolutely determined to keep violence levels down as we approach the summer months.”
