THREE people have been stabbed as members of the public tried to intervene in a phone snatch robbery in central London.
A group of two or three people attacked a pedestrian just before 10am in Bishopsgate on Thursday, according to witnesses.
Members of the public then sought to intervene to stop the assailants.
City of London Police said the attack was not being treated as terror-related but is being treated as a suspected robbery, with the incident involving a phone being snatched.
London Ambulance Service (LAS) attended the scene and said crews treated four people, three of whom were taken to hospital and one of whom was discharged.
Witnesses described a fight breaking out in front of the 22 Bishopsgate skyscraper.
Sayeed Dukanwala, owner of BK News, a newsagent’s next to the scene, witnessed the incident as it unfolded on Thursday morning.
He said: “I was here in my shop working when I saw some guys running past my shop and shouting ‘Oi oi oi.’
“After a few minutes I saw a fight break out over there (at the scene) and people running away.
“Then some people came in and told me there was a stabbing. They said there was a man and a lady on the floor and there was blood.”
He added: “I felt scared and unsafe when I heard what happened.”
A cordon, which is about 50 metres long, is in place outside 22 Bishopsgate and is being guarded by seven officers from City of London Police.
Inside the police tape, medical kits can be seen spread out on the ground in small piles. Blood can also be seen on the pavement.
A City of London Police statement 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.”
The force later added: “This incident is being treated as a suspected robbery. Investigations are ongoing.”
An LAS statement said: “We were called at 9.52am today to reports of a stabbing in Bishopsgate.
“We sent a number of resources – three ambulance crews, two adv paramedics, two incident response officers and our tactical response unit.
“Our crews treated four patients. Three were taken to hospital and one discharged.”
A spokesperson at 22 Bishopsgate said: “We are aware of a distressing incident that took place this morning on Bishopsgate, in the vicinity of our building, and our security team provided the police and emergency services with any necessary support while they were on site.
“We immediately carried out a dynamic risk assessment that determined there was no direct threat to the building and therefore have not locked down the building or prevented access to entrances.”
