Birmingham knife attack
Officers in Birmingham say that it is not clear how extensive the injuries were after this afternoon's stabbing in the city centre
A knifeman has been arrested by police this evening following a stabbing on the London Overground.

One person was knifed in the attack at Hackney Central station in East London, his condition is not thought to be life-threatening.

Pictures from frightened commuters show hundreds of passengers evacuating the station with service suspended between Highbury & Islington and Stratford following the incident.

It came at the same time as three people were injured in a stabbing in Birmingham - the latest example of violent crime plaguing Britain's streets.

Witness Leon Bruff, 29, who was in the same carriage as the attack, said passengers 'trampled over each other' to escape the 'maniac'.

Mr Bruff The Sun how the knifeman yelled: 'Don't mess with me, I'll kill you' while storming the train which was full of commuters and TfL staff.


The father-of-three added that the knifeman's blade was at least '12 inches long'.

One traveller described chaos at the east London station, and commuter Nick Renaud-Komiya said he saw a man with a knife.

'There was a sea of people running in my direction, it took me a couple of seconds to register that something wasn't right,' the 28-year-old said.

'I saw a guy with a knife in his hand walking towards me, he was shouting a lot but I couldn't get any of what he was saying.

'The police arrived really quickly and they grabbed him and had him up against the police car.'

Another witness said on Twitter: 'Avoid Hackney Central. Some guy just pulled out a knife on my overground train and the staff are saying he stabbed someone. Absolutely terrifying.'

Passenger Bunmi Ogunleye wrote: 'We were all terrified! The guy who got stabbed was running until he collapsed. Bleeding from the chest.'

Melanie Norton added: 'Lots of people running out of Hackney Central saying there's a man with a knife!'

Hazel Orton, also wrote on Twitter: 'Full on stampede on the train after a man was attacked on the train coming into Hackney Central, 5 feet away from where I was sitting, people dropped phones and bags, hope victim is OK.'

She told the Evening Standard: 'People were shouting 'get me off the train. I was sitting with a few other people, I was in a bit of confusion and didn't understand what was going on.

'Everyone was getting off and I stopped to look around to see what had happened. As I looked to my right there were people huddled around someone on the floor.'

'I felt shell shocked, and frightened, [the] poor man had been stabbed in the chest and was struggling to breathe.

Ms Orton said paramedics arrived within five minutes and brought a defibrillator with them.

Joe Street wrote: 'Avoid Hackney Central. Some guy just pulled out a knife on my overground train and the staff are saying he stabbed someone. Absolutely terrifying.'

British Transport Police spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Officers are appealing for information after a man was stabbed at Hackney Central Overground Station earlier this evening (Tuesday 2 October 2018).

'Just after 6pm this evening British Transport Police officers, along with colleagues from the Metropolitan Police Service, were called to a report of a man having being stabbed at Hackney Central Overground Station.

'The London Ambulance Service has taken the victim to hospital, where he is being treated for his injuries.

'A man has been arrested. Police are asking that anyone who was at Hackney Central Overground Station and saw anything suspicious, to please get in touch.

'Anyone who witnessed the incident or with information should contact BTP by sending a text to 61016, or by calling 0800 40 50 40 - quoting reference 512 of 02/10/2018.'

The attack comes as three people were injured in Birmingham city centre in a stabbing this afternoon.

West Midlands Police confirmed they were called just before 5.45pm but said the extent of the victims' injuries is not clear.

The three are being treated at hospital as police investigate CCTV footage from the city centre.

Both incidents prove to the latest examples of Wild West Britain amid an ongoing gun and knife crime epidemic plaguing the nation's streets.

The incidents follow Home secretary Sajid Javid's Conservative Party Conference announcement of a new £200million fund to tackle violent crime by treating it as a 'disease'.

Mr Javid is set to establish ayouth endowment fund and and launch a consultation on giving police officers, teachers, social service workers and council officials a new legal duty to work together to tackle violent crime.