Investigations underway into attempted murder in Southampton

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, as police investigate a serious assault in Southampton.

A man, who's aged in his 20s, sustained multiple puncture wounds and was taken to hospital Friday afternoon. He's said to be in a critical condition.

Two men, one aged 18 and the other who's 21, are now in police custody.

Cordons have been put in place on Coleman Street, in the city, and an address on Golden Grove as investigations continue.

Superintendent Phil Lamb said: “This has been a fast-paced investigation into a serious assault in broad daylight in the centre of the city, and my thoughts are with the victim and his family.

“My officers are working incredibly hard to identify any outstanding suspects and to establish the exact circumstances of what happened.

“Incidents like this have absolutely no place in Southampton, which is why when they do we will make sure resources are in place to bring those involved to justice.

“This week we had been marking Operation Sceptre, a national initiative to reduce knife crime, with focused patrols and officers going into local schools to educate young people about the dangers of carrying a weapon.

“It forms just part of the work all year round that we do to tackle the issue, as one of our district priorities.

“Officers will be conducting reassurance patrols in St Mary’s, so if you live nearby and have any concerns please speak to them.”

Anyone who has information or has mobile phone, CCTV, dash cam or doorbell footage of the incident including moments before or after, are urged to contact police.

Officers in the city have now authorised a Section 60 order in response to the incident on Coleman Street. 

The emergency power allows officers to stop and search anyone in a designated location, without the restrictions of normal stop and search. 

The order is implemented in order to prevent serious violence from occurring, or in response to an incident of serious violence and will be in place across Southampton until 7pm this evening (Saturday 19 November). 

However these powers can be extended at any time.  

Southampton-based Police Sergeant Geoff Cole, said: “This level of violence and use of weapons in Southampton will not be tolerated. 

“We are able to implement a Section 60 order at any time and we will use further powers if we need to in order to prevent this kind of disorder from happening. 

These are not measures that we put in place lightly, but we have done so on this occasion to minimise the risk to the local residents of Southampton and ensure that there are no further incidents of this nature in our communities.

 You will likely continue to see an increased police presence across multiple areas of Southampton why our officers continue their enquiries and establish the circumstances that led to serious assault yesterday afternoon in broad daylight. 

 If you have information about this incident or if you have any concerns, then I would implore you to please speak to any of our officers that you might see in the community. 

 I would just like to take this opportunity to thank members of the public for their ongoing support during a time where there has been undoubtedly a lot of concern. We want to reassure you that we are increasing our patrols, and working hard with partners and wider support services to identify those who are repeatedly intent on causing harm.”