Yesterday evening the police responded to a call of a fight in Edmonton.  Police officers and the ambulance service attended and found four men with stab wounds, who have been hospitalised.  No arrests have been made so far.  Police invoked stop and search powers in defined geographical boundaries from Sunday night to 8am this morning.  The Met Police Service North Area BCU is in constant contact with local MPs and other partners.

On Saturday evening a shooting took place nearby in another part of Enfield.  The police believe the two events might be linked.

The police have promised to deploy additional local police officers in the borough over the coming days.  These police officers, I have been told, will be appropriately briefed to enable them to operate sensitively within our communities and comply with the defined parameters of their powers.

Kate Osamor, MP for Edmonton, reacted to the news of last night’s incidents, saying, “I am horrified to hear reports of multiple stabbings in Edmonton on Sunday evening, and of a shooting nearby in Enfield on Saturday.  This is terrible news, and I implore anyone who knows anything about these events to contact the police.

“This violence must stop.  Our communities cannot bear the fear, worry and devastation violence leaves.  The lives of families, friends and loved ones of young people caught up in violence are being torn apart.

“This Government must bear the responsibility for austerity and the devastating cuts it has inflicted on policing, local government and youth services.

“You can’t keep the public safe on the cheap, and it’s very clear that the Tories are failing in their duty to protect the public and keep our citizens safe.

“I will be standing with my constituents to find answers and to build solidarity against this violence.  I will be going to youth centres, police stations, hospitals, Council services and community organisations because we must unite and say together that we have had enough.

“I continue to work with the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Knife Crime, of which I am an officer, and I will continue to plead with government to release funds to help us bring peace to our streets.”

ENDS