200 officers deployed to Middlesbrough after knife attack amid wave of violence
A 39-year-old man was stabbed in Eston on Thursday, the latest in a series of violent incidents that have left nine people dead in Middlesbrough.
Middlesbrough flooded with officers after stabbing and string of deadly incidents
More than 200 police officers from across the country are being deployed to Middlesbrough following a series of violent incidents that have left nine people dead, The Independent reports.
A 39-year-old man was stabbed in Eston at around midday on Thursday, in what Cleveland Police described as an assault involving a bladed weapon at an address on Sedgemoor Road. No arrests have been made, though police said enquiries are ongoing.
Earlier the same day, a vehicle crashed into the wall of a property on Steele Crescent, South Bank, at around 12.30am. Superintendent Emily Harrison said the property was empty at the time and no injuries were reported. "Our investigation is in its early stages and it has not yet been confirmed whether this incident is linked to wider organised crime," Harrison said.
Detectives and armed response officers are among those drafted in to support Cleveland Police. Alec Brown, leader of Redcar and Cleveland Council, said the reinforcements were there to keep "innocent residents" safe.
Andy McDonald, the MP for Middlesbrough & Thornaby East, described the situation in stark terms on Times Radio. "People are going to their shops and not feeling safe and feeling trapped in their own homes," he said. "That is just unacceptable. This is terrorism, and we've got to have an appropriate response to deal with the people who are causing such mayhem in our communities."
The Thursday stabbing follows a crash on the A66 last Saturday in which seven people died — among them two police officers and five young men — and a house fire in Grangetown in the early hours of Wednesday that killed a seven-year-old girl and her aunt.
Valentina Foster, aged seven, and Natalie McDonald, 34, died in a fire at an end-of-terrace property on Birchington Avenue, Grangetown. Two men, aged 23 and 31, have been arrested on suspicion of murder and remain in police custody. A 48-year-old woman is in a critical condition at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle; three others sustained injuries described as non-life-threatening.
Lisa Kirton, the mother of Natalie McDonald, told The Times her daughter "was a beautiful, bubbly person who everyone knew" and described Valentina as "a very cute girl."
Josh Kirton, McDonald's brother, said his sister had no gang connections. "My sister was not involved with anything to do with gangs, or the A66. That's what makes this so senseless," he told reporters. "People think they can do whatever they like. There's some terrible people in the world, and now my sister and Valentina have gone."
Cleveland Police said it has not been confirmed whether Thursday's stabbing is linked to the A66 crash or any of the other incidents. The force also said it would not rule out a connection between the Grangetown fire and the motorway crash.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said "all of the support will be provided to get to the heart of what has happened" following what he called the "utterly devastating" fire.
Source: The Independent