Woman stabbed in west London coffee shop as members of the public detain knifeman

A woman has been stabbed in an early morning attack in a coffee shop in west London, the Metropolitan Police said.

Members of the public intervened to detain the knifeman when the woman, who is in her 30s, was attacked on busy Edgware Road on Thursday morning.

Some people threw cafe chairs at the man to try and stop him, one witness reported.

The woman was treated at the scene for stab injuries and has also been taken to hospital.

The Met said it was awaiting an assessment of her condition.

Her attacker was also taken to hospital and has been arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm.

The force said it is believed the victim and suspect are known to each other.

Witness Omar Awada, 47, said: “He tried to run away but the local guys managed to catch him and they beat him until the police came.

“It was like Tom And Jerry, they were on him right and left, the guys."

One man, said to have knocked the alleged attacker down with a bicycle, was described as a “hero” by a witness.

The witness, who did not want to be identified, said: “We heard screaming, we came out, the guy had a knife, he was stabbing the woman repeatedly, maybe five or six times.

“Maybe 30 people or 40 people were chasing him. They were from our community.

“They used anything in their hands to stop him.

“When people chased him he tried to escape and scare people with the knife, but we had one hero who put him down on the ground. He hit him with his bike.”

A police cordon was set up around Maison Du Sultan and a neighbouring Costa coffee shop, with officers standing guard.

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