A charity worker stabbed to death yesterday for his iPhone by a moped gang became the latest victim of surging violent crime in London.
Abdul Samad, 28, was knifed in the heart on his doorstep. Hours earlier, a 20-year-old man was stabbed to death by a moped-riding thug outside Parsons Green station. Figures yesterday revealed overall crime in London has risen by 5.6% in the 12 months to the end of September, with significant increases in cases of youth violence.
A total of 35 people under the age of 25 have been murdered in the capital in the past 12 months, an 84% rise on the same period last year. The number of cases of serious youth violence, a measure of gang activity, also rose by 18%. There were 30% rises in the categories of robbery, theft and knife crime as well as a 16% increase in the number of rapes.
The number of murders in London in the past 12 months has risen to 133, compared with 106 in the previous period. It is one of the highest totals in the past 10 years.
The police figures were revealed at a meeting of the London Assembly police and crime committee yesterday. Met Commissioner Cressida Dick was facing questions at the committee about how she will tackle the rises. The force is facing a further £400mn budget cut.
Scotland Yard on Monday announced it will stop investigating thousands of minor crimes, including low-level burglaries and assaults, to save money.
Sophie Linden, the deputy mayor for policing and crime, said the Met faced unprecedented pressure, with government cuts forcing it to make £1bn of savings between 2010 and 2021.
Linden said: “It is more important than ever that the government does the right thing in the Budget, and gives our police and security services the funding they need to keep us safe.”
Tory London Assembly member Susan Hall backed calls for extra funding but accused mayor Sadiq Khan of “taking his eye off the ball” in tackling crime.
She said: “In reality the Met is facing no greater funding pressure than it was under Boris.”
Martin Hewitt, the Met’s assistant commissioner for territorial policing, said: “On Monday night we saw two murder inquiries launched after two men were killed in separate incidents on our streets. We will bring those responsible to justice, and our detectives have already made arrests, and we will continue to pursue those who choose to bring violence to our streets with the utmost vigour.”
He said officers were tackling moped gangs, seizing hundreds of weapons and taking a record number of guns off the streets, but added: “We ask everyone, from parents and teachers to the wider community and criminal justice system and other agencies, to join us in this fight.”
The figures show there were a total of 805,173 offences in the past 12 months. Violent muggings rose from 20,386 cases to 26,767.
Thefts from persons, which include moped snatches, were up from 34,552 to 45,175. Break-ins rose by 13.4% to 49,914. There was also a 22% increase in the number of knife crime with injury offences. Gun crime rose by almost 19%. The number of shootings was up by 11% to 338. Hate crimes also rose, with increases across all categories and Islamophobic offences up 23%.
GULF TIMES
