A fight on Westminster Bridge has left a man seriously ill as police arrested four people following an alleged attempted murder in the heart of London.
Officers swarmed to Westminster Bridge after an incident witnessed by shocked tourists just yards from the Houses of Parliament – with footage shared online by London resident Akinbayo Dele and stamped AKDVIDEO appearing to reveal the response of emergency services to show.
The Metropolitan Police initially said they were dealing with a stabbing, describing it as ‘an isolated incident’ that was ‘not being treated as terrorism’.
The force has now issued an update saying the man had not been stabbed but had suffered cardiac arrest, adding: ‘Investigations are underway to determine how he came into cardiac arrest.’
Officers were called to reports of a fight on the bridge at around 10.45am today and found the man now reportedly ‘fighting for his life’ after being taken to hospital in a critical condition.
A new appeal for witnesses to come forward with information and CCTV or dashcam footage was announced by the Met this afternoon.
The latest warning comes amid concerns about rising knife crime in the capital and pressure on London Mayor Sadiq Khan to do more to calm security fears.
Some 14,500 knife crimes were recorded in London last year, almost 40 a day, up from almost 11,500 in the previous 12 months.
Images shared online by London resident Akinbayo Dele appear to show the response of emergency services following this morning’s incident on Westminster Bridge
Officers were called at around 10.45am on Sunday after reports of a fight on the bridge in central London.
Four people have been arrested after reports of a fight on the bridge, Scotland Yard said
Of the 50,510 knife crimes in England and Wales in 2023-2024, 30 percent (14,961) were recorded by the Metropolitan Police, 10 percent (5,268) by West Midlands Police and five percent (2,321) by West Yorkshire Police.
When looking at the number of offenses per population, West Midlands Police had the highest rate, with 178 per 100,000 residents, followed by the Metropolitan Police (169 per 100,000), then Cleveland Police (137 per 100,000) and of South Yorkshire (109 per 100,000). 100,000).
Following today’s incident, a user of X, formerly Twitter, posted online: ‘Westminster Bridge closed in both directions. Hundreds of police on site while the bridge was cordoned off. What’s going on?’
The Met said in a new statement this afternoon: ‘At 10.43am on Sunday 24 November, police were called to reports of a fight on Westminster Bridge, SE1.
‘Officers attended alongside the London Ambulance Service and London’s Air Ambulance where they found a man in cardiac arrest.
‘Initial reports suggested the man had been stabbed, but further investigation has confirmed this is not the case. An investigation is underway to determine how he suffered cardiac arrest. The man is in critical condition in hospital.’
Three people have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and one for affray.
Two of those arrested were treated in hospital for head injuries, the Met said.
Officers were called at around 10.45am today to reports of a fight on Westminster Bridge
Police are today gathering evidence at the scene on Westminster Bridge
Police officers were called to Westminster Bridge in central London after an incident there this morning left a man ‘fighting for his life’ in a critical condition in hospital
The road next to the Houses of Parliament was closed off after the attack
The bridge was closed to traffic in both directions due to the incident this morning
The Metropolitan Police have said they are not treating the incident as terror-related
A road closure was put in place and bus routes 11, 12, 148, 159 and 453 were all diverted.
Scotland Yard added in their latest statement: ‘The police would especially like to get in touch with people who were in the area at the time and may have witnessed the incident.
‘Officers are also urging anyone who has CCTV, mobile phone footage or dashcam footage that could assist the investigation to come forward.’
Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 quoting CAD 2468/24NOV, or contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visit crimestoppers-uk.org.