Three people have been stabbed and a further person injured after being ‘pushed to the floor’ in a bloodbath on the streets of central London this morning as they ‘tried to prevent a theft’.
A mass emergency response has been seen outside the City of London’s tallest building near Liverpool Street Station in as multiple ambulances and police cars rushed to a scene on Bishopsgate.
Footage on social media showed four police vehicles and four ambulance vehicles on the road by the 22 Bishopsgate skyscraper.
It is the latest incident in a scourge of knife crime and stabbings across London and more widely in the UK.
The City of London police said: ‘We are aware of an incident this morning on Bishopsgate.
The incident earlier this morning saw four people injured, of which three remain in hospital, thought to be the stabbing victims
Reports on social media suggest that four people have been stabbed on Bishopsgate in central London
A large area of Bishopsgate has been cordoned off and police remain at the scene as investigations begin
Pictures from the scene show police and paramedics at work as a large area is cordoned off
Police guard a crime scene on Bishopsgate following an incident earlier this morning
Blood is seen on the pavement on Bishopsgate after a vicious attack on the streets of London this morning
‘Our officers are at the scene and London Ambulance are in attendance. A cordon is currently in place.’
They later said: ‘We received reports of three stabbings and a person pushed to the floor on Bishopsgate at 9.46am and officers arrived at the scene at 9.51am.
‘Three victims were taken by LAS to a nearby hospital to be treated.
‘This is an ongoing situation, but is not being treated as terror-related.
‘This incident is being treated as a suspected robbery. Investigations are ongoing.’
No arrests have been made at this time, MailOnline understands.
London Ambulance said in a tweet: ‘We were called at 9:52am today to reports of a stabbing in Bishopsgate.
‘We sent a number of resources – three ambulance crews, two advance paramedics, two incident response officers and our Tactical Response Unit.
‘Our crews treated four patients. Three were taken to hospital and one discharged.’
Police officers carry out investigations outside 22 Bishopsgate in the City of London after the attack in broad daylight
Parts of the scene were left in disarray after paramedics rushed to treat the victims and get them to a local hospital
Images online showed a large police and ambulance response to the incident
The exact cause of the incident remains unclear but reports online suggest it could have been triggered by a row over an attempted theft.
Witnesses have reported seeing two suspects in balaclavas on electric bikes who attempted to steal someone’s phone.
Passers-by leapt into action to stop the theft outside the impressive 22 Bishopsgate sky scraper, which is the tallest building in the City of London, shortly before 10 am.
Companies in the building include insurance firms Hiscox and Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Limited, as well as law firms such as Cooley LLP and Covington & Burling LLP.
Police have so far ruled out terrorism.
A news agent described how a City of London worker appealed for help after his phone was snatched by two members of a motorcycle mugging gang.
Sayeed Dukanwala, 53, told MailOnline: ‘I was in the shop and I heared shouting. There was a man crossing the road who said that his phone had been stolen.
‘Then I saw four or five people fighting. There were two boys with helmets and balaclavas on. And there were some smartly dressed people fighting with them. Then I saw one smartly dressed man was lying in his back with paramedics treating him.’
A police source told MailOnline: ‘The incident appears to be an attempted phone snatch.
‘Three members of the public intervened and were injured.
‘One person was stabbed and two were slashed.
‘However, their injuries are not life-threatening.’
He added: ‘There does not appear to be any link to terrorism.’
Andrea Silva told The Metro: ‘I did not see it happen. I saw from a bus.
‘There was a fair amount of blood visible but the casualties were behind a white screen.
‘Lots of paramedics over someone on the floor. That is all I saw.’
A second eyewitness told the Evening Standard that casualties were ‘hidden behind a white screen.’
Pictures from the scene show abandoned London Ambulance medical kits as the victims were rushed to hospital.
Another tweeted: ‘Just saw about four badly injured people on the side in the road by Bishopsgate going by on the bus.’
Reports say the incident lasted around two minutes and took place just a few hundred metres from a police station.
Local MP Nickie Aiken said: ‘Concerned to learn of the incident in Bishopsgate. I’m in contact with City Police for updates.
‘My thoughts are with all those involved including the first responders.’
This latest incident is one of many horrific stabbings in England in recent weeks. A 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death in the early hours of Tuesday morning in Gateshead.
Talented footballer Tomasz Oleszak had moved to the UK from Poland ‘for a better life’ as a ‘shy’ six-year-old.
Tomasz, who lived with his mum Kamila Wisniewska and his young brother, lived on the Springwell estate for most of his life and was described as a ‘friend to so many’ by those who knew him.
This story is being updated.
