Police closed off part of an Ashton-under-Lyne street and 'checked for weapons' after being called out to a stabbing. An 18-year-old was stabbed in the back of the head late on Saturday night (April 16).
Emergency services rushed out to Blandford Street and the teenager was rushed to hospital. He was discharged this morning and police are continuing with their enquiries.
Video footage, which was filmed at around 11.30pm on Saturday night, shows a section of Blandford Street taped off by police between Cavendish Street and Oldham Road. At least two police vans can be seen in attendance, with an officer manning the cordon at the junction with Cavendish Street.
The area in the cordon includes the ASM Cash and Carry and the Gericke factory, with the nearest homes along Blandford Street being found further up the road. Many residents who spoke to the Manchester Evening News were unaware of the incident taking place last night.
One woman, who lives on Blandford Street, was saddened to hear of another young man being involved in a stabbing. "A teenager... I don't know what is happening," she said.
Some eyewitnesses had seen an emergency services presence late last night and earlier this morning (Sunday). One told the M.E.N. that police said they had been checking for knives in bushes in the area, while another witness said they had seen blood on the ground in the area which was cordoned off.
Blandford Street sits close to Millennium Green and Burlington Street, to the west of Ashton's town centre. It's an area which has been plagued by anti-social behaviour and criminal activity over the years.
Last May, residents at Burlington House told the M.E.N. they felt like 'prisoners in our own homes' due to large groups congregating, loud noise and drug dealing in the area. In November 2017, a gang of 60 youths surrounded a police van and hurled fireworks at it, while one resident was attacked outside her own home.
Incidents spiked again last summer following the easing of lockdown, and a knife sweep at Millennium Green unearthed a number of weapons. Chf Insp Lee Broadstock told the M.E.N. last August that GMP was receiving 'reports of youths gathering, drug taking and some criminal damage' in the area.
Anyone with information about Saturday's stabbing is asked to contact police online via the LiveChat facility, if able, or by calling 101. Alternatively, details can be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
