Knifeman kills hero train passenger

Last updated at 15:16 28 May 2006


A man was stabbed to death following an altercation on an express train yesterday as horrified passengers looked on.

The killing, the latest in a series of knife crimes which have shocked the nation, was followed by a dramatic manhunt when staff locked the knifeman inside the carriage - only for him to escape by smashing a window and leaping out.

Rail staff were alerted to the attack by the screams of passengers and raced to help them to safety. It is believed a guard then sealed the doors of the carriage, leaving the knifeman and his victim inside.

Moments later, the attacker dramatically kicked out the window and clung to the side of the high-speed Virgin train, carrying around 200 passengers, until it slowed down to make its scheduled stop at Oxenholme station in the Lake District.

Armed police arrived to search nearby buildings and soon afterwards a man was taken into custody. Several passengers were treated for shock at the scene. A passenger in the carriage next to the one where the stabbing happened described the panic that followed the attack. The 24-year-old Scot said: 'It was crazy, everyone was crazy. I saw the guy who did it, he kicked out the window then hung on the edge of the train while it was moving.

'As it slowed down he jumped out. Then he ran off into a nearby field and a couple of people from the train got out and chased after him.'

The victim, who was travelling with a female companion, was stabbed in the chest. The suspect was travelling alone.

A British Transport Police spokesman said: 'An incident occurred at approximately 11.50am on a train travelling from Glasgow to Paignton. As it approached Oxenholme there was an altercation where a male received fatal injuries. He died on board.'

The 21-year-old suspect is from Skelmersdale in West Lancashire.

Concern over knife attacks has grown in recent years and last week a knife amnesty began in a bid to rid the streets of thousands of weapons.

On Friday, a 14-year-old schoolboy in Birmingham was stabbed in the abdomen, while last week promising footballer Kiyan Prince, 15, was knifed to death trying to stop a fight outside his school in London. Earlier this month, part-time policewoman Nisha Patel-Nasri was knifed to death outside her London home.

Six per cent of all violent crimes nationally are knife-related.

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