Five murders in a week as London experiences a surge in violence
London has experienced its bloodiest week this year with three deadly stabbings and two fatal shootings in the space of seven days.
Detectives in south London launched two separate murder inquiries in the space of four hours on Saturday night amid fears of a fresh wave of post lockdown violence.
Police and the London Ambulance Service were called to Black Prince Estate in Kennington at around 10pm on Saturday night following reports of a stabbing.
They discovered a man in his 30s suffering from knife wounds and despite the effort of officers and paramedics he was declared dead at the scene.
A 26-year-old man, who is believed to have been stabbed during the same incident, later turned up at hospital where he was treated for non-life threatening injuries.
Detective Chief Inspector Dave Whellams appealed for witnesses to come forward to help catch the killer.
He said: “A man has lost his life and a family has been left suffering unimaginable grief because of the callous use of a knife to inflict fatal injuries.
“Officers who were called to the incident and then paramedics worked to save him, but tragically he died at the scene.
“I will do all I can to get justice for this family, and, along with colleagues from my homicide teams, I will use every available tactic to find whoever is responsible for this terrible attack.”
A short time later, eight miles away in Penge, police responded to reports that a man had been shot in a residential street.
When they arrived at the scene they discovered a man in his 30s lying in the street suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
It was the second fatal shooting in the capital in seven days after 22-year-old Imani Allaway-Muir was gunned down next to a children's playground in north London last Saturday afternoon.
Two local men aged 39 and 34 have since been charged with murder and firearms offences.
On Wednesday afternoon 18-year-old Donnell Rhule was stabbed to death in the Dulwich area of south London.
A 26-year-old man is due in court in Bromley on Monday charged with his murder.
Two days after Mr Rhule was killed another murder investigation was launched after two men were stabbed in the Poplar area of east London.
One of the victims, who was thought to be in his late teens, died at the scene while another was rushed to hospital.
Hours later in the Haringey area of north east London there was another stabbing in which a 23-year-old man was left in a critical condition.
The spate of street murders comes after lockdown marked a period of relative calm in the capital.
This time last year there had been 56 homicides in London, compared with 32 in 2020, but that includes the four month lockdown period.
There is concern that violence could surge in the coming weeks as gangs seek to reestablish their position in the lucrative drugs market after months of being unable to operate at their usual capacity.
