Five people have been transferred to hospital after a man wielding a sword stabbed several people, including police officers, in Hainault, northeast of London, before being arrested.
“We were called shortly before 7 a.m. to reports of a vehicle being driven into a house in the Thurlow Gardens area. There were reports people have been stabbed,” the Metropolitan police said in a statement on Tuesday. “At this time we understand the suspect went on to attack other members of the public and two police officers.”
A spokesman for London Ambulance Service (LAS) said, “At this time we understand members of the public and two police officers had been attacked. Working together with our emergency services partners, we treated five people on the scene and took all five to hospital,”
“All crews have now left the scene,” he added.
According to the police, a 36-year-old man wielding a sword was “arrested” at the scene and is in custody, and the involvement of other suspects in the “serious incident” was ruled out.
The statement said the attack “does not appear to be terror related.”
According to The Guardian, police were investigating whether the suspect “had a history of mental ill-health.”
Meanwhile, Transport for London said Hainault underground station “is closed due to a police investigation in the area.”.
The UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has described the attack as “shocking,” saying “such violence has no place on our streets.”
Meanwhile, London’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, said he was “absolutely devastated” at hearing of the incident and was “in constant contact” with the Met police commissioner.
