The London borough where a 15-year-old girl was killed on her way to school has seen the highest number of stabbings in five years.
There have been 920 stabbings resulting in injury in Croydon since January 2018, according to Met Police data. August saw 32 attacks – the highest level in five years.
It makes it on average over the past five years the third worst borough in London for that particular type of crimes.
Elianne Andam was fatally attacked by a 17-year-old boy after she got off a bus last Wednesday, the Old Bailey heard yesterday. A man in his 40s was killed on Monday night and 17-year-old boy was knifed in a park in the borough during the early hours of Tuesday morning – the third stabbing in a week.
Norman Brennan is an anti-knife crime campaigner and a former Met police officer.
He told MailOnline: ‘Croydon is one of the most dangerous areas in Britain. We have lawless streets that nobody controls apart from the criminal element. There are many gangs in Croydon. Lots of their members carry knives, some won’t be in school.
‘These people have no values and no idea of the value of life. That’s why so many people are losing their lives or taking those of others. Each knife is a potential murder if you hit an artery or an organ.’
September 27: Elianne Andam was fatally stabbed in the neck in Croydon, south London
September 12: Bradley Hutchins died in a double stabbing on North Walk in Croydon. The 20-year-old has been described as ‘lovable’ and ‘cheeky’ by his family
Since January 2018, there have been 3,217 reported incidents of knife crime in Croydon alone – according to the Met Police’s stats
Mayor Jason Perry, Executive Mayor of Croydon, told MailOnline: ‘Croydon remains devastated by the tragic murder of 15-year-old schoolgirl, Elianne Andam. My thoughts are with her family, friends, school and everyone who has been affected. I share our community’s concern at this and other recent incidents, and their determination that things must change.
‘Together with our partners the police and our communities we are working hard to tackle knife crime and help young people stay safe. Over the past 12 months, the council has made significant investment in community intervention programmes to guide those at risk away from violence. But it is clear much, much more needs to be done and we will be working closely with our partners to redouble our efforts on knife crime and its causes.’
A 17-year-old boy was stabbed during the early hours of Tuesday morning. It followed the death of a man in his 40s who had suffered ‘multiple stab wounds’ on Monday night. No arrests have been made.
Norman Brennan told MailOnline: ‘Each knife is a potential murder if you hit an artery or an organ. The only reason more people aren’t dying is due to the skills of our paramedics, police officers and surgeons.
‘The communities in these areas want the police to do something. They think it’s outrageous that people are committing these crimes.
‘But when the police do something – like stop and search – there are certain people in these areas who don’t like it.
‘We need a mandatory minimum term of five years for adults who carry knives and three for juveniles.
‘If we had that the prison population would increase significantly but knife crime would reduce.’
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Yesterday, a 17-year-old boy appeared in court charged with Elianne’s murder.
A tragic statement issued by the family described the ‘beautiful’ teenager as the ‘light of our lives’.
‘She was bright and funny, with many friends who all adored her,’ it said. ‘She was only 15, and had her whole life ahead of her, with hopes and dreams for the future.
‘All those dreams have now been shattered. Our lives have fallen apart, along with that of our wider family.’
June 13: Usmaan Mahmood was attacked in Thornton Heath Recreation Ground. The 20-year-old was taken to hospital but later died
May 23: Lucas Sutton lost his life after he was chased down Pawsons Road, Croydon before collapsing in a pub with a knife wound to his lung
A 14-year-old boy was fatally stabbed two years ago just a few minutes from where Elianne was attacked.
Jermaine Cools died during a mass brawl on London Road, an area that has long been notorious for drug dealing and violence.
Two days before Elianne was killed a man in his 20s was stabbed on Barclay Road.
Four days later, on September 29, a man in his 30s was stabbed and now has ‘potentially life threatening injuries’.
On September 12, Bradley Hutchins died in a double stabbing on North Walk. The 20-year-old was described as ‘lovable’ and ‘cheeky’ by his family.
Another man, 19, was found nearby also with stab wounds. He was taken to hospital and survived with non life-threatening injuries.
Earlier this year, 20-year-old Usmaan Mahmood was attacked in Thornton Heath Recreation Ground.
Prince William (left) visits Swindon-based youth charity BEST – Be A Better You, set up by Don Bryden (right), where he pledged support to stop youngsters turning to knife crime
Mr Mahmood was taken to hospital on June 13 but died the following day.
At the time, Detective Chief Inspector Mike Nolan said: ‘A young man has lost his life and it is imperative we identify those responsible.
‘Londoners don’t want violent criminals in their communities and we must work together to remove them from our streets.’
Statistically, most teenage victims of knife crime are male and the attacks often take place after school hours.
Another victim of knife crime, Lucas Sutton, lost his life on May 23 after he was chased down on Pawsons Road before collapsing in a pub with a wound to his lung.
Prince William has vowed to support efforts to stop youngsters from turning to knife crime and violence following the recent spate of crimes.
The royal, 41, met workers at Swindon-based BEST – Be A Better You, an organisation which provides sports training and one-to-one mentoring to keep teenagers and young adults out of trouble.
Don Bryden – who set up the group with wife Sarah in 2020 after their daughter Jess became exposed to criminal exploitation – told the prince that Britain was suffering a ‘knife crime pandemic’.
