Huntingdon train stabbing suspect's brutal rampage before passengers fought back - The Mirror

Heroic passengers and railway staff fought to save others as the horror attack unfolded on the 6.25pm LNER train from Doncaster to King’s Cross forcing the train to be diverted to Huntingdon

Terrified passengers have described the moment a normal journey turned into a 'scene from a horror film' after a knifeman unleashed a marauding attack.

Those who boarded the busy 6.25pm LNER train from Doncaster to King’s Cross on Saturday night had expected to arrive into London less than two hours later - but ended up running for their lives down the carriages as they watched one of the biggest mass stabbings in British history unfold. A total of 11 people - including a man who was allegedly stabbed in the head while protecting a young girl - were rushed to hospital after the quick-thinking driver made an unscheduled stop at Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire, allowing passengers to flee down the platform.

Today, British Transport Police confirmed that 32-year-old Anthony Williams, of Langford Road, Peterborough, has been charged with ten counts of attempted murder, one count of ABH (Actual Bodily Harm), and one count of possession of a bladed article in relation to the incident at Huntingdon. He has also been charged with another count of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in connection to an incident at Pontoon Dock DLR station on November 1. He is due to appear at Peterborough Magistrates' Court today.

'Please don't kill me', passengers pleaded with knifeman

The mass stabbing attack began to unfold in carriage J, towards the middle of train, just after departing Peterborough station at 7.30pm on Saturday. When he first heard people shouting “run, run, there’s a guy literally stabbing everyone”, one passenger said he thought it might have been a cruel Halloween prank.

Recalling the chilling moment, he told the Express: "At first I thought it was Halloween, is this some sort of joke? Is it a prank? And that's when I realised how panicked they looked, and then I saw someone who was covered in blood.

"I quickly realised I needed to get out of there... just joined them moving through the train. Someone was [at] first worried there was a gun, someone said 'oh there's a guy we think he's got a gun', but that wasn't the case. We weren't able to move super rapidly because A - there were quite a few of us, and B - there was at least one person in our group of people moving through the train who had been stabbed."

Dayna Arnold meanwhile told the Mirror she fell as she tried to flee, and recalled how she told the knifeman: "‘Please don’t kill me". It appeared to spark some kind of response in the attacker but did not stop the attack, as she explained: "Something shifted in his face and he just carried on. He said: ‘The devil is not going to win.'"

Her boyfriend Andy yesterday said that he first saw the violent attack just minutes after pulling out of Peterborough station. He said: "We were on the same carriage. Within about five minutes we just heard the panic and commotion in people's voices. I didn't see him but I saw the knife moving, plunging. I pushed Dayna but we were separated. There was this young lad who was about 19 or 20.

"He had gashes on his arm and a severe puncture under his arm. There was a lot of blood coming out of him. He said, 'I've been stabbed, please help me'. It looked like an artery had been hit. I took off my belt and made a tourniquet. He was saying, 'Please call my dad, I don't want to die'."

Heroes leapt in front of knifeman to save others

One of the victims is thought to be an older man who deliberately jumped in an attacker’s way to shield a younger girl from the knife, leaving him with injuries to his head and neck. He was later seen mopping a wound to his head.

Cassie Marriot, who helped people coming off the train, said she spoke to a teenage girl who looked “petrified” after narrowly missing being attacked. She told the BBC: “I met another young girl who was about 18 or 19. She told me she was listening to music on the train when a man tried to stab her. She said someone pulled her out of the way. She looked absolutely petrified.”

Nottingham Forest fan Stephen Crean meanwhile told other passengers "going to go confront him", and was later seen at Huntingdon station visibly injured and receiving medical attention. The knifeman continued his attack down the train before reaching carriage G, the buffet carriage, where he was confronted by an LNER worker who tried to stop him going any further.

He is thought to have been the person who suffered the most serious injuries in the ordeal, and remains left fighting for his life in hospital. By 7.39pm, Cambridgeshire Police had been called, with British Transport Police (BTP) on its way by 7.42pm.

'We ran to a house and hammered on all the doors'

Hero driver and Iraq War veteran Andrew Johnson diverted the London-bound train to Huntingdon station after being alerted to what was going on, enabling emergency services to act quickly when the train stopped shortly before 7.50pm. A father on board with his children said everyone started to run and “pile off” the train when it came to a halt.

The man, who gave his name as Steve, told BBC Radio 4 that he and his children fled to a nearby house. He said: "We ran out into the car park and ran up a hill and out onto a road and we bumped into two or three young girls, with my kids, and then we ran to someone’s house and hammered on all the doors and pressed the buzzers.

"We got let in and a very kind elderly couple looked after us until it was safe to leave. It was just unnerving not knowing what was happening. Knowing you were in a box and couldn’t get out of it if you wanted to."

Suspect repeated 'kill me' after being stopped at station

Armed police were seen running down the platform at the station as they evacuated the train and went to apprehend the attacker. According to a witness, police Tasered a man before wrestling him to the ground.

Taxi driver Viorel, 42, said: “As soon as I see the passenger a few minutes later I then see everybody running out of the station. Then 10 seconds later a man dressed in black holding a huge kitchen knife in his hand runs past my car at 7.47pm.

"The police arrive seconds later and I could hear him shouting ‘kill me, kill me, kill me’ to them. They then Taser him and as soon as he is down they say to him ‘drop your weapon’... I didn’t understand the gravity until after I left the area and saw the huge police presence. I was shocked and then I knew it was bad."

In the hours that followed, Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident as "deeply concerning" and urged people to follow police advice. Mayor of Huntingdon councillor Audrey McAdam likened the incident to a "horror film" and said she was "very emotional" after being informed of the stabbings.

LNER staff member who 'tried to stop attacker' in life-threatening condition

Last night, the British Transport Police confirmed that five casualties had been discharged from hospital and one remains in a life-threatening condition. The force confirmed that this person is a member of LNER rail staff who was on the train at the time of the attack and attempted to stop the suspect.

"Detectives have reviewed the CCTV from the train and it is clear his actions were nothing short of heroic and undoubtedly saved many people's lives," the force said in a statement. A 35-year-old man from London who was also arrested the scene was released with no further action, with the force confirming that he was not involved in the attack.