Yahoo News At least seven people shot as weekend of violence hits London
At least seven people were shot during a weekend of bloodshed across London.
Three men were found injured after the Met were called to reports of gunshots heard in Beethoven Street, Queen’s Park at 7.45pm on Sunday.
A 26-year-old man, discovered with a suspected gunshot injury, was in hospital on Monday with life-changing injuries.
A teenager, aged 19, was stabbed and a third man, 29, whose injuries are not known, are also receiving treatment.
Meanwhile, four men and two women were injured in a shotgun attack at about 1.30am on Sunday in Brixton, south London. One victim, 32, was also stabbed.
They were hit by pellets sprayed into the group but police say no one suffered life-threatening injuries.
Detective Chief Superintendent Lee Hill, head of the Scotland Yard violent crime taskforce, said he feared that violent crime would rise in response to the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions.
“There are a number of reasons, such as pent-up aggression. As restrictions lift, people are more mobile,” he said. He told the Guardian examples of violence this month included in Hyde Park and Greenwich, where youths clashed with machetes and knives.
Det Ch Supt Hill said: “People have been cooped up for long periods of time. As the lifting of lockdown happened over the last few months, the opportunity to commit crime is more prevalent. We are starting to see that increase.”
He added pockets of the capital were seeing violence rising, saying: “We are working hard to stabilise it.”
The weekend of violence saw police officers pelted with missiles near the London Eye on Saturday night as riot police were deployed to clear the area. In Putney, west London, a boy aged 13 suffered superficial wounds in a knife attack at 6.30pm on Saturday. A 14-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm.
And in Camden, a 24-year-old man was stabbed with a broken bottle during a brawl at a pub after the Belgium v Russia Euro 2020 game on Saturday.
Witnesses said the fight erupted about 10.10pm over sharing a portion of chips.
It followed days of bloodshed in London, which saw three teenagers killed.
He is the 16th teenager stabbed to death in the capital this year. A 15-year-old boy has been charged with murder.
Sixteen hours earlier, Denardo Samuels-Brooks, 17, died after he was chased in Streatham before being cornered and knifed in the chest.
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