Statement on Camden High Street stabbings
Joint statement from Councillor Georgia Gould, Leader of Camden Council and Keir Starmer, MP for Holborn and St Pancras and Co-Chair of Camden’s Youth Safety Taskforce, following last night's fatal stabbing in Camden Town.
"Last night two stabbing incidents took place on Camden High Street. Tragically one man in his mid-twenties died at the scene and another young man is in hospital.
"Over the last few weeks we have experienced an unprecedented increase in violence on our streets – violence which has now resulted in the tragic deaths of three people in less than a week. We cannot bring these young people back, or ease the grief of their families, friends and communities. Our community is smaller without them, and we must recognise that whatever has been done to date has not been enough to keep them safe.
"This is a crisis for Camden, London and for our country. We understand the fear and anxiety that our communities will feel today. We feel the same worries. We need extra police on our streets now and in the future. In Camden, this is our first priority and we are today coming together to understand what more we can do with our communities to stop the violence. We also need Government to prioritise resources – we need investment in our police and investment in our young people.
"There will be over fifty additional police out on the streets today and over the weekend, in and around Camden Town. Camden’s community presence officers are in the area speaking to communities and businesses. A Section 60 Order - giving the police additional stop and search powers - is in place across Camden and the police will keep this under review. Investigations are ongoing and we encourage anyone with information to speak to the police. Ensuring that those who commit murder and violence on our streets are brought to justice is a critical part of ending a cycle of violence and giving families a measure of closure."
Anyone who has information about this incident can contact the police on 101 quoting reference number CAD 8865/12Sep, and confidentially through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.