The Metropolitan Police has launched a murder investigation after a knife-wielding attacker stabbed one man to death and injured three more in South London.
The force said a man in his 20s died at the scene in Croydon soon after emergency services arrived at Gloucester Road at around 8.15pm on Halloween night.
Scotland Yard reported two more men in their 20s suffered serious injuries after being stabbed in the leg and the back respectively. One of them men, believed to be 22, is in a life-threatening condition.
A fourth man went to a south London hospital with minor injuries. No arrests have been made in connection with the attack.
One eyewitness told the Express they saw a woman believed to be a relative of the dead man running down the street shouting: “He’s dead, he’s dead.”
One resident told the BBC there had been problems in the area since the local police station had closed.
Another said: “Things have been heading that way for a while. This is not a very good area, there’s drugs and all kinds of things going on.”
A Met Police spokeswoman said:
“Police in Croydon were called by London Ambulance Service (LAS) to Gloucester Road, Croydon at 20:12hrs on Monday, 31 October following reports of a stabbing.
“Officer attended and found three males believed to be aged in their twenties suffering from stab injuries.
“Two of the males have been taken to hospital in a serious condition.
“The third was treated at the scene for critical stab injuries. He died at the scene a short while later.
“A post-mortem examination will be held in due course. Formal identification awaits. Police are in the process of informing next-of-kin.
“A fourth male, believed to be the same age as the other victims, has presented himself at a south London hospital with stab injuries which are not believed to be serious.
“A crime scene remains in place.”