Good Samaritans tried to save woman stabbed to death for her handbag after hearing her scream

Witnesses desperately tried in vain to save the victim’s life after she collapsed in a pool of blood in Edgeware, north London having been stabbed as she tried to stop her handbag being stolen

Dan Warburton Senior News Reporter

19:21, 10 May 2024

Police speak to members of the public at a bus stop near to the scene where a woman in her 60s was fatally stabbed in Burnt Oak Broadway, near the junction of Limesdale Gardens in Edgware at 11.50am on Thursday.(Image: PA)

A woman was stabbed to death in the street as she tried to stop her handbag being snatched, a horrified witness has claimed.

Good Samaritans desperately tried in vain to save the victim’s life after she collapsed in a pool of blood. Jess Bloom, who was working at a hairdresser’s near the scene, told how she saw the woman being repeatedly knifed as she clung to her bag.

She added: “The guy was trying to get her handbag but she said, ‘No,’ and fought back. I saw her pull the handbag twice. He pulled her into the road and stabbed her three times.

“He let go of her and she dropped to the ground. She was covered in blood and his hand was red. It happened at the bus stop and the woman ended up in the middle of the road. He ran off and everyone ran to the woman to help her. I heard the scream.”

Flowers left at a bus stop near to the scene where a woman in her 60s was fatally stabbed(Image: PA)

Land and air ambulance officers treated the woman for stab injuries, but she died at the scene(Image: PA)

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The victim, who was in her 60s, was comforted by shop workers who rushed to her aide in Edgware, North London. Driver Khalif Gureye, 36, stopped his car and dialled 999 after the attack on Thursday. He said: “It’s horrible. I see a lady on the floor and she is bleeding. Some people helped her.”

Land and air paramedics treated the victim for stab injuries but she died where she lay. Floral tributes were laid at the scene. A 22-year-old man was arrested in the nearby Colindale area and is in custody.

The Met’s Det Chief Insp Alex Gammampila said: “I know the effects of this incident will be felt throughout the community and would like to reassure everyone that a man is in custody, and we are not looking for any other suspects. We are working hard to establish the motive for this offence, which we believe to be an isolated incident.”