Huntingdon train attack knifeman's 'zombie-like' stare before stabbing elderly man - The Mirror

A woman who was on board the LNER service from Doncaster to London's King's Cross station has told of the chilling moment she locked eyes with the knifeman as he carried out his frenzied attack

A woman has described the moment she made eye contact with the Huntingdon train attacker - and said he had a chilling 'zombie-like' stare

The mass stabbing on the 6.25pm LNER service from Doncaster to London's King's Cross station on Saturday night left 11 people injured, with police confirming last night that two people remain in a critical condition. Passengers said the attack began after the train passed through Peterborough before the hero driver made an unscheduled stop at Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire, allowing them to get off safely.

Anthony Williams, 32, from Peterborough, was charged with 10 counts of attempted murder and is due to appear at Peterborough Magistrates' Court today. Now, one eyewitness has recalled how the knifeman stared directly at her with a "totally calm, almost zombie-like" expression.

The passenger, who was sat in a window seat in Coach J, asked to remain anonymous but said: "A few minutes after leaving Peterborough, I heard a commotion behind me. At first I thought it was rowdy football supporters coming back from a Saturday game, but then I heard someone shout 'he's got a knife', and other passengers started rushing towards me."

As hordes of terrified people ran through the train, she said an elderly man fell down in the aisle next to the passenger. She said: "I looked up and saw a tall man dressed in all black with a long steel knife staring at me."

The passenger said that the attacker "seemed totally calm, almost zombie-like". She added: "Thank God, he then turned his eyes away from me."

The woman said the attacker turned his attention an elderly man, who had fallen before briefly getting his feet again. She said: "The knife man stabbed him repeatedly in the back."

She described the attacker's movements as "not frenzied, almost in a steadying tapping motion". The attacker then moved on and was heard to say: "I'm not going to leave anyone".

The eyewitness continued: "I got out of my seat and fled to the front of the train to Coach M, a first class carriage. As I went through the carriages I could see carnage as people's abandoned belongings were strewn over the tables as they rushed to escape.

"By the time I arrived, Coach M was very crowded. I couldn't get in but I noticed the toilet door slowly closing and asked 'Is there room for me?' I joined three women and a young boy. We locked the door and held the handle."

She said the group kept silent but could hear the attacker outside, as well as shouts of "we love you". As the train continued to Huntingdon, which took around 10 minutes, the passenger recalled how the driver of the train repeated messages to reassure people that help was on the way.

When the train arrived, she said passengers fled from the train. However, the group in Coach M's toilet stayed behind. "Police came and talked to us through the locked door and told us to stay where we were until they came back."

She said the group of five stayed in the toilet for around 15 minutes and, at one point, all of the lights went out. She said: "It had gone quiet, and we managed to get a message to a friend to ask the police to let us out."

By this time the platform had emptied, and the group were the last ones off of the train. She said: "There was a lot of blood on the platform and it was smeared down the windows of Coach C at the other end of the train."

The group went to give their statements to the police and were then escorted to Huntingdon Police Station, where they were assisted by volunteers from the Red Cross and Salvation Army. The eyewitness said: "The police and their support was incredible. I pray everyone pulls through."