Stabbings 'aren't a sign of crisis' (From Watford Observer)

Stabbings 'aren't a sign of crisis'

11:00am Friday 22nd August 2008 in News By John Harrison

The attack happened in the car park of The Flag.

The teenage victim of a horrifying knife attack remains in hospital a week after he was chased into a pub car park and brutally stabbed.

The 19-year-old was cornered in an isolated car park in Watford on Saturday morning, where his attackers then slit his throat and stabbed him in the stomach.

His friend, also 19 years of age, also received a knife wound to the back during the sickening attack.

However, in the week David Beckham launched a high-profile anti-knife campaign in the town, police have said the nation’s knife crisis will not spread to Watford.

The police said the two victims were stabbed following a minor clash in the street, in what one officer described as a “massive over-reaction” by the pair’s attackers.

The attack happened at about 1.40am, last Saturday morning, as the teenagers walked away from The Flag, in Station Road, close to Watford Junction. Hertfordshire police said the pair had an altercation with four men and a woman who were driving past them in a silver saloon car.

The vehicle then stopped and the victims, both from Watford, were chased into the pub’s car park, where they were violently set upon.

Both of the men received serious stab wounds and were taken to hospital.

One was later discharged, while the second man remains in Watford General, where his condition was yesterday (Thursday) described as stable.

The two victims have not been named.

Watford’s Neighbourhood Inspector, David Dumbleton, said knife crime in the town was “extremely unusual”, adding there was no reason to believe the town faced an increase in knife attacks.

He said: “Whatever has been going on in London, it is not something we have had to suffer from so this incident is very unusual for us.

“It was not linked to organised crime, it was a dreadful incident, but it certainly was not a gang-related crime.”

The horrific attack came in the same week England’s leading football stars launched a nationwide anti-knife drive at The Grove, in Watford.

On Tuesday, David Beckham sat alongside England defender Rio Ferdinand, goalkeeper David James and the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, to launch the ‘It Doesn’t Have to Happen’ campaign.

The football stars, who were part of the England squad preparing Wednesday’s friendly against the Czech Republic, urged young people not to carry knives.

The press conference came three days after the Station Road knife attack.

At the time of going to press Hertfordshire police had not arrested anyone for the attack. However, officers are currently examining closed-circuit television footage which may have captured the assault.

The suspects are described as four white men and one white woman, all in their late teens to early 20s.

The first man is white, of slim to medium build, between 5ft 10ins to 6ft tall. Officers say he was clean-shaven, with dark, spiky hair. He was wearing blue jeans and a green t-shirt with a white motif on the front.

A second man is described as white, with a skin-head hair cut. He is thought to have been wearing a polo shirt with a striped pattern.

The woman is described as being in her late teens to early 20s with shoulder-length blonde hair.

Detective Constable Karen Warner, of the local crime unit in Watford, said: “This incident appears to be an extreme reaction to a minor altercation.

“The investigation is a priority for us and we are already exploring several lines of enquiry to identify and arrest the offenders.

“We are appealing for help from members of the public if they have any information about this incident or were in the area at the time and may have witnessed these events.”

n Anyone with information about the attack should telephone the non-emergency number on 0845 33 00 222 or phone Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.