The manhunt for alkaline attack suspect has entered its fifth day, with Abdul Ezedi, 35, who has “significant injuries to the right side of his face”, still on the run. Here’s everything we know so far.
What happened?
Police say a girl and her mother were left with potentially life-changing injuries after they had a corrosive substance thrown on them in south London on Wednesday.
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Officers received reports that a man pushed a three-year-old girl to the ground and threw an alkaline substance at her, her eight-year-old sister and the girls’ 31-year-old mother on Lessar Avenue, near Clapham Common, a residential area in south London, on Wednesday evening.
The woman and the three-year-old girl suffered potentially life-changing injuries, the Metropolitan Police said. Police said the suspect was believed to be someone known to the victims, but they did not elaborate.
The suspect made off in his car which crashed nearby. He then left the vehicle and ran off. Twelve people were injured in total in the attack.
The Met has released CCTV video footage of Ezedi in the Tesco on Caledonian Road, where he is seen buying what appears to be water in the self-service checkout before leaving the shop.
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Superintendent Gabriel Cameron reading a statement to the media on Lesser Avenue, near Clapham Common, south London.
PA Video – PA Images via Getty Images
Who is the suspect?
The Metropolitan Police identified the suspected assailant as 35-year-old Abdul Ezedi and released an image of his last-known sighting, which placed him on Caledonian Road in Islington, north London at 8.48pm on Thursday.
It has been reported that Ezedi, who is from Afghanistan, twice unsuccessfully tried to claim asylum in the UK and has also been convicted of sexual offences.
He was eventually allowed to stay in this country after converting to Christianity.
The Met said it is working with Northumbria Police as the wanted man may be trying to return to Newcastle, where he had been living.
The case has re-ignited the debate about the UK’s asylum system, with former immigration minister Robert Jenrick among those demanding answers.
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In the immediate aftermath of the attack, Today programme presenter Nick Robinson accused Jenrick of “drawing the wrong conclusions” by attacking the asylum system.
What are the police doing?
The manhunt entered its fifth day on Monday with a £20,000 reward in place for anyone with information leading to Ezedi’s arrest.
More than 200 calls have been received from members of the public with potential sightings, but they have since been discounted.
Counter-terrorism officers have been drafted in to help scour hundreds of hours of CCTV in the search for the 35-year-old.
Police at the scene in Lessar Avenue near Clapham Common, south London, where a woman and her two young children have been taken to hospital after a man threw a suspected corrosive substance on Wednesday evening.
James Weech – PA Images via Getty Images
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Detectives are working on the premise that he is either being hidden by someone or has come to harm.
He was using his bank card to travel around on the Tube network, but the card has not been used since Wednesday.
Ezedi does not have his phone on him – which makes the search more challenging, officers said – as it has been recovered and analysed by police.
Officers arrested a 22-year-old man on suspicion of assisting an offender on Monday and later released him on bail.
Police have confirmed three people were killed, and another three were injured, after a knife-wielding attacker went on a shocking early morning rampage in Nottingham on Tuesday.
The people killed have been named as Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar, both 19-year-old Nottingham University students, and Ian Coates, a school caretaker in his 60s,
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A man was later arrested in connection with the incidents. Here’s everything we know.
How did the attacks play out?
The attacks occurred in at least three different places and the suspect was arrested in a fourth location, and took place over 90 minutes.
A man stabbed the two students to death on Ilkeston Road just after 4am.
He then fatally stabbed the man in his 60s on Magdala Road, more than a mile away, stole his van and ran down three pedestrians on Milton Street shortly afterwards.
One man is in a critical condition with the two others believed to have suffered minor injuries.
The van was stopped on Maple Street, where a man was tasered and detained by police officers.
In between the attacks, police believe the suspect tried to enter a care home after stabbing the students, but was refused entry by residents.
Two of the three victims of the attack on Tuesday: Grace O’Malley-Kumar, left, and Barnaby Webber, right
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What did witnesses see?
Witnesses gave harrowing accounts of the attacks, with one telling the BBC he heard “awful, blood-curdling screams” and saw a man “dressed all in black with a hood and rucksack grappling with some people”.
Some described a horrifying scene in the city centre about 90 minutes after the initial attack when the van ran into pedestrians at a street corner and then fled.
Lynn Haggitt was on her way to work when a white van pulled up beside her at 5.30am. She saw the driver look in his mirror and spot a police car approaching slowly from behind without its lights on. The driver then accelerated and struck a man and woman at a street corner, she said.
“He went straight into them, he didn’t even bother to turn,” Haggitt told reporters according to The Associated Press. “The woman went on the curb, the man went up in the air, there was such a bang, I wish I never saw it, it’s really shaken me up.”
Kane Brady, a student at the University of Nottingham, said he awoke to shouts of “armed police” and heard what sounded like a gunshot outside.
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He said he saw officers holding stun guns and a man being dragged out of the van and pinned on the ground.
“I saw him getting arrested, him trying to resist,” he told GB News. “When they opened the van, I saw a large knife being pulled out and then straight away that’s when police closed off both roads.”
Photos showed the hood of the van dented and cracks in the windshield.
What do we know about the assailant?
Nottinghamshire Police said a 31-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and that they believe he acted alone.
Police confirmed they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the attacks.
They are keeping an “open mind” as to what the motives behind the attacks were and are working with counter-terrorism investigators to establish what happened.
<img class="img-sized__img landscape" loading="lazy" alt="A police forensics officer searches a white van in Nottingham.” width=”720″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.wellnessmaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/everything-we-know-about-the-nottingham-attacks-4.jpg”>
A police forensics officer searches a white van in Nottingham.
Zac GoodwinZac Goodwin/PA Wire
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What do we know about the victims?
Barnaby Webber’s parents, David and Emma, and his younger brother Charlie, released a statement through the PA news agency.
It said: “Complete devastation is not enough to describe our pain and loss at the senseless murder of our son.”
They described him as “a beautiful, brilliant, bright young man, with everything in life to look forward to”, and a “talented and passionate cricketer”, adding: “At 19 he was just at the start of his journey into adulthood and was developing into a wonderful young man.”
The parents said they are “enormously proud” of his achievements, while his brother is “bereft beyond believe”, while asking for privacy to process and grieve.
Barnaby Webber and Grace Kumar.
The two Nottingham students who were murdered in a senseless, unprovoked attack.
They didn’t have to die. They shouldn’t have died. Now, they deserve justice. pic.twitter.com/Q9Qn47cMSw
A statement from Grace O’Malley-Kumar’s family, released through Nottinghamshire Police, said: “Grace was an adored daughter and sister; she was a truly wonderful and beautiful young lady.”
Referencing her younger brother, the statement added: “Grace was not just a sister to James but his best friend. He is completely heartbroken. As parents, words cannot explain our complete and utter devastation. She will be so dearly missed.”
The family said: “We were so incredibly proud of Grace’s achievements and what a truly lovely person she was.
“She was resilient and wise beyond her years. Grace was so happy in life fulfilling her ambition of studying to become a doctor whilst playing topflight hockey at university.”
They added that extended family and friends are also “devastated”, and that they request privacy to “face this sorrow”.
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<img class="img-sized__img landscape" loading="lazy" alt="Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Barnaby Webber’s fathers – Sanjoy Kumar and David Webber – speak during a vigil at the University of Nottingham.” width=”720″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.wellnessmaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/everything-we-know-about-the-nottingham-attacks-5.jpg”>
Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Barnaby Webber’s fathers – Sanjoy Kumar and David Webber – speak during a vigil at the University of Nottingham.
Jacob KingJacob King/PA Wire
At a vigil in the city on Wednesday, the heartbroken fathers of the two university students gave emotional speeches.
Grace’s father, Sanjoy Kumar, told crowds “you need to love everyone” with the hand of Barnaby’s dad, David Webber, on his shoulder.
He said: “The love that we have out here, I just wish we had it everywhere. So, look after each other is the big thing.
“Look after your friends and look after people around you. It is so important.”
Ian Coates, who worked as part of L.E.A.D Academy Trust, was found fatally stabbed in Nottingham in the early hours of Tuesday.
Ian Coates’ sons, Lee and James, spoke to reporters outside the crime scene and said their father was due to retire in four months.
Lee said: “If we had to think about it, he’d be lying in a bed with us holding his hand, him dying naturally in 20 to 30 years’ time.”
His brother added: “Not dying on a street because some guy decided it’s not his day today.”
They added that the news “rocked everyone’s world”, as their father was “everyone’s friend, always willing to help”.
“Nobody deserves this but he definitely didn’t. None of them did, it’s a tragedy,” James said.
What have the police said?
Nottinghamshire Police chief constable Kate Meynell confirmed officers had carried out searches at a number of properties around the city – with cordons seen being put up on various sections of Ilkeston Road.
At a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, she said: “We are still in the early stages of the investigation. I need to determine exactly what the motives were behind this attack.
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“We are keeping an open mind and are working closely with counter-terrorism policing to establish the facts as we would normally do in this type of circumstance.
“The families of all the victims have been informed and are being supported by specially-trained officers.”
Prince Harry has described the state of the British press and the government as both being at “rock bottom” and accused them of being “in bed” with one another.
Harry gave evidence on Tuesday at the high court in London in his lawsuit against the Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), which he accuses of phone-hacking and other unlawful acts.
In a witness statement, the prince said: “Democracy fails when your press fails to scrutinise and hold the government accountable, and instead choose to get into bed with them so they can ensure the status quo.
“In my view, in order to save journalism as a profession, journalists need to expose those people in the media that have stolen or highjacked the privileges and powers of the press, and have used illegal or unlawful means for their own gain and agendas.
“I feel that I need to make sure that this unlawful behaviour is exposed, because obviously I don’t want anybody else going through the same thing that I’ve been going through on a personal level.
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“But also on a national level as, at the moment, our country is judged globally by the state of our press and our government – both of which I believe are at rock bottom.”
Sunak has refused to be drawn into a war of words with the Duke of Sussex over his claim.
The prime minister told reporters travelling with him to Washington: “As you know, we have a long-standing convention that prime ministers don’t comment on members of the royal family.”
Prince Harry alleges that about 140 articles published between 1996 and 2010 by MGN titles contained information gathered using unlawful methods, and 33 of these have been selected to be considered at the trial.
Andrew Green KC, for MGN, questioned Harry on about 20 of the 33 articles over the course of the hearing, which lasted nearly five hours.
Harry’s claim is being heard alongside three other “representative” claims during a trial which began last month and is due to last six to seven weeks.
A 12-year-old boy has been charged with murdering a 60-year-old “pillar of her community” who was hit by a car.
South Yorkshire Police said the boy, who cannot be identified due to his age, will appear before Sheffield Youth Court on Saturday charged with murdering grandmother Marcia Grant.
Emergency services were called at 7.10pm on Wednesday to reports of a collision between a car and a woman in the Greenhill area of the city.
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<img class="img-sized__img landscape" loading="lazy" alt="Marcia Grant, who died after she was hit by a car in the Greenhill area of Sheffield on Wednesday.” width=”720″ height=”640″ src=”https://www.wellnessmaster.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/boy-12-charged-with-murdering-woman-who-was-hit-by-car-1.jpg”>
Marcia Grant, who died after she was hit by a car in the Greenhill area of Sheffield on Wednesday.
South Yorkshire Police via PA Media
Mrs Grant has yet to be formally identified but her family has released a statement, saying: “Marcia was a warm, loving and dedicated wife, mother, grandmother, sister and friend and a pillar of her community.
“Her loss has already sent shockwaves through all who knew her or was lucky enough to be included in her orbit.
“We ask for privacy at this time while further investigations are under way and the family try to come to terms with this enormous loss.”
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Police remained outside a semi-detached house on Hemper Lane, in Sheffield, on Thursday evening.
A number of floral tributes had been left outside the property which had police tape across the driveway.
Kim PillingPAA police cordon in place at Walker Avenue in Bolton where a 15-year-old boy was stabbed several times.
A 15-year-old boy has died after being stabbed several times in Bolton.
The teenager, named locally as Reece Tansey, knocked on the door of a nearby house to ask for help after he was attacked in Walker Avenue shortly before 4.45am on Tuesday.
Greater Manchester Police said he had suffered several stab wounds and was taken to hospital but died from his injuries.
The force said a murder inquiry has been launched and no arrests have yet been made.
A cordon is in place covering a large section of Walker Avenue in Great Lever, with a forensic tent in the front garden of one address.
The victim was a pupil at Harper Green School in Farnworth.
In a message to parents on its website, the school said: “The school community is shocked and saddened by this terrible news and our thoughts are with the student’s family and friends at this difficult time.
“For a life to be ended at such a young age is a total tragedy.
“We will ensure any students who need it receive support and advice through our pastoral system.
“Harper Green is a close-knit community, we will work together over the coming days and weeks in supporting all those affected.”
Several hundred well-wishers later gathered at nearby Harper Green playing fields in pouring rain and released balloons in Reece’s memory.
Appealing for information, detective superintendent Chris Bridge said: “This incident will understandably be a huge shock to the community and our thoughts are with the boy’s family at this awful time.
“These are very early stages of our investigation but we would like to reassure the public that we are doing all we can to piece together what happened and find those responsible.
“There will be an increased police presence in the area whilst we carry out a number of lines of inquiry and anyone concerned in the local neighbourhood can speak to our officers.
“I would urge anyone who may have information or witnessed anything in the area to come forward.
“Even the smallest information may be crucial to our investigation.”
Anyone with information can call police on 101 quoting incident 359 of 04/05/2021 or report online at gmp.police.uk; or to remain anonymous contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Former footballer Ryan Giggs has been charged with assaulting two women and controlling or coercive behaviour, the Crown Prosecution Service said.
A CPS spokesperson said the Wales manager will appear at Manchester and Salford Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday April 28.
Greater Manchester Police said Giggs was charged with assault causing actual bodily harm against a woman in her 30s and the common assault of a woman in her 20s.
Both assault charges relate to an incident on November 1 last year, which is understood to have happened at Giggs’ home in Worsley near Salford. The older woman was treated for injuries at the scene.
Giggs has been released on bail ahead of the court appearance.
“We have authorised Greater Manchester Police to charge Ryan Giggs with engaging in behaviour which was controlling or coercive and assault occasioning actual bodily harm,” the CPS said.
“A charge of assault by beating relating to a second woman has also been authorised. Mr Giggs will appear at Manchester and Salford Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 28th April.
“The CPS made the decision to charge Mr Giggs after reviewing a file of evidence from Greater Manchester Police.
“Criminal proceedings are active and nothing should be published that could jeopardise the defendant’s right to a fair trial.”
In a statement, Giggs said: “I have full respect for the due process of law and understand the seriousness of the allegations. I will plead not guilty in court and look forward to clearing my name.
“I would like to wish Robert Page, the coaching staff, the players and the supporters every success at the Euros this summer.”
Giggs said he would not make any further comment while the case is ongoing.
Human remains found in an area of Kent woodland have been identified as belonging to Sarah Everard, Scotland Yard has said.
The 33-year-old vanished while walking home from a friend’s flat in south London on Wednesday March 3.
The marketing executive is thought to have walked through Clapham Common towards her house in Brixton – a journey which should have taken around 50 minutes.
She was last captured on a doorbell camera walking along the A205 Poynders Road towards Tulse Hill at around 9.30pm on March 3.
A serving police officer in the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command had earlier been arrested on suspicion of Everard’s kidnap and murder.
Met Commissioner Cressida Dick sought to reassure the public in the wake of Wednesday’s developments, saying “it is thankfully incredibly rare for a woman to be abducted from our streets”.
She added: “But I completely understand that despite this, women in London and the wider public – particularly those in the area where Sarah went missing – will be worried and may well be feeling scared.”
The Met said the arrested officer’s main job was uniformed patrol of diplomatic premises, but would not specify where he had worked. He was not on duty at the time of Everard’s disappearance.
The diplomatic protection squad is responsible for guarding the Parliamentary estate including Downing Street and the Palace of Westminster, as well as embassies in London.
The officer, in his 40s, was also arrested over a separate allegation of indecent exposure, the Met said.
A woman in her 30s has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.
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