A man who was stabbed at a Sainsbury’s warehouse in Croydon said he fought off the attacker by hitting him on the head with a fire extinguisher.
Five people have been injured and a man arrested following a “random” knife attack at a parcel centre in south London.
The attack happened close to an Asda supermarket in Beddington, Croydon, at 10.15am on Thursday morning.
Pictures from the scene show a Sainsbury’s and Argos distribution centre cordoned off with emergency services outside.
The London Ambulance Service confirmed that five patients were taken to hospital, with one going to a major trauma centre.
Staff at the parcel centre told the Metro: “A random guy came to the gate and said he worked for Argos.
“A security guard confronted him, tackled him and was stabbed. Then more staff tried to help and three more were stabbed.”
Follow the latest updates below.
Key Points
- Man fights off attacker using a fire extinguisher in Croydon
- Police believe all those involved in knife attack 'knew each other'
That's all from us
20:07 , Daniel KeaneThank you for following our live coverage.
Latest update from the Met Police says attacker and victims 'knew each other'
16:16The Met Police has released a further statement following the knife attack in Croydon.
Police were called at 10.15am on Thursday to reports of a stabbing at a warehouse in Marlowe Way, Beddington.
Five people - a man in his 50s, two men in their 30s, and two men in their 20s - were taken to hospital with stab wounds.
Their conditions were assessed as not life-threatening.
A 30-year-old man was arrested nearby on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon.
He was also taken to hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Chief Superintendent Andy Brittain, local policing commander for south London, said: "Officers responded quickly and arrested the suspect within an hour. An investigation is now under way.
“Based on initial enquiries we believe all those involved knew each other. Therefore we do not believe there is any wider risk to the public.”
Suspect was “stabbing at me like a serial killer” says hero who fought him
15:32 , Jacob PhillipsA man who fought off a knife attacker in south London said the suspect was “stabbing at me like a serial killer”.
Joseph Denton, 29, told the PA news agency: “He didn’t say a word. He was trying to kill me and I’d never seen him before in my life.
“He stabbed two people in the chest, one had a big gash in his arm. I think someone in the side as well.”
Mr Denton, who is from Rayleigh, Essex, added: “I tried to lock the door, but where I couldn’t I had to just confront him and fight him basically.
“I got him on the floor and decided to hit him with a fire extinguisher, which sort of calmed everything down.
“And then people rushed in because he was on the floor at that point, and then we all just carried on attacking him until he left.
“I didn’t really have a choice to be honest. There’s one door he was coming through. So, there’s nowhere to go anyway, so I had to confront him.
“He had his thing just stabbing at me like a serial killer.”
Asked about the knife, Mr Denton said: “It was literally the size of my face. It was a Rambo knife about eight inches, with all jagged edges.”
Hero battles 'knifeman' with fire extinguisher
15:30A man who was stabbed at a Sainsbury’s warehouse in south London said he fought off the attacker by hitting him on the head with a fire extinguisher.
Joseph Denton, 29, told the PA news agency: “I was there for an audit and the company basically started shouting and saying: ‘He’s back’.
“So we locked ourselves in the room and we heard shouting coming from the warehouse.
“It sounded like someone was getting murdered. So, we thought we’ve got to go and help them.”
Mr Denton, who had a bandage around his finger, added: “Before that, he came up to the door and he was banging on the door trying to get through.
“Then he went back into the warehouse. And when we heard someone was getting stabbed through the phone, we opened the door to go and help him, at which point he turned around and ran towards us.
“He got to the door before I could shut it and he got half of his body through, and was stabbing at me in my chest, and I was deflecting it.
“He sliced my finger open and got a couple other cuts on my arms, and then basically fought him off there.
“As I pushed him out, he fell and I caught his ankle in the door, and I was squashing his ankles so he couldn’t get back up, at which point I picked up a fire extinguisher and opened the door and hit him on the head with it.
“There was about six of us all attacking him at this point, and then he ran off.”
Police cordon remains at the scene
15:15 , Jacob PhillipsA police cordon remains in place near the staff car park at a Sainsbury's distribution centre in Croydon, where five people were stabbed this morning, writes Sami Quadri who is at the scene for the Standard.
A marked police vehicle was seen at 2.40pm outside the Sainsbury's and Argos facility as officers continue their investigation into the incident.
Argos doing 'everything it can' to support police investigation
14:31 , Jacob PhillipsAn Argos spokesperson has told the Standard it is doing everything it can to support the police’s investigation.
A spokesperson said: “We’re doing everything we can to support the teams on site and gathering as much information as possible to support the police with their investigation.”
Staff describe the moment a "hero" security guard tackled a suspect
14:13 , Jacob PhillipsStaff at a parcel centre have told the Metro that an attacker had arrived at the gates armed with a knife.
One workers said: “A random guy came to the gate and said he worked for Argos.
“A security guard confronted him, tacked him and was stabbed. Then more staff tried to help and three more were stabbed.
“The security guard was stabbed in the arm – he’s ok.”
Another staff member described how the attack was “carnage” and a “total shock”.
They said: “The security guard was a hero. The attacker claimed he worked at Argos but he did it to trick his way through the security gate.”
London Ambulance Service says five people taken to hospital
13:45 , Jacob PhillipsThe London Ambulance Service has confirmed that five people were taken to hospital following a “stabbing incident”.
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We were called at 10.21am this morning (Thursday 23 January) to reports of a stabbing incident in Marlowe Way, Croydon.
“We sent a number of resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, a paramedic in a fast response car, an incident response officer, members of our Tactical Response Unit and London’s Air Ambulance.
“Our crews treated five patients at the scene, before taking one to a London major trauma centre and four to other hospitals.”
Updated police statement
13:37 , Jacob PhillipsThe Met Police have provided an update to say that a 54-year-old has been rushed to hospital.
A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: “At 10:15hrs on Thursday, 23 January, officers responded to reports of a stabbing at a commercial address on Marlowe Way, Beddington
“Officers are on scene with the London Ambulance Service to treat four injured people.
“A 54-year-old man was taken to hospital where his injuries were deemed non-life-threatening.”
“One man has been arrested.”
Pictures of the scene show cordon near distribution centre
12:47 , Jacob PhillipsPhotos from the scene in Croydon show emergency services outside a distribution centre on Marlowe Way.
Photos show responders outside a building with Sainsbury’s and Argos branding on them, with a cordon in place.
Four people injured in knife attack in Croydon
12:35 , Jacob PhillipsFour people have been injured in a knife attack in south London, police say.
Officers responded to reports of a stabbing at a commercial address on Marlowe Way, Beddington at around 10.15am on Thursday.
The attack appears to have taken place close to an Asda supermarket.
