Girl, 15, found stabbed to death

A 15-year-old girl has been found stabbed to death on a housing estate in south-east London.

The girl, who suffered multiple wounds, was found in a lift at Matheson Lang House on Baylis Road, in Lambeth, at about 1545 BST.

A London Ambulance Service spokesman said their crew arrived at the scene in under four minutes but failed to resuscitate the teenager.

A man, aged in his 30s, has been arrested over the teenager's stabbing.

Police said they did not believe the incident was gang-related.

The girl, who was pronounced dead at the scene, is the 16th teenager to be killed in London since January.

A woman and her child were returning home and called the lift when they found the girl's body inside, a BBC reporter at the scene said.

The Metropolitan Police have begun a murder inquiry and the area has been cordoned off. The girl's next-of-kin have been informed.

A police statement said: "On attendance we found a girl in a lift suffering from a number of stab wounds.

"We are keeping an open mind about motive at this early stage. However, it is not believed to be gang-related."

A London Ambulance Service spokesman said: "We sent a fast response car, an ambulance, the air ambulance and an officer to the scene, the first of which arrived in under four minutes.

"Sadly, despite extensive efforts to resuscitate the patient, she was pronounced dead at the scene."

Sharon Moore, who lives in the block said residents were given security fobs on Friday.

She said: "You think you are fine once you are in the building, this is the last thing you expect... I'm extremely shocked because once I'm in the door and I get in I think I am safe."

BBC NEWS | England | London | Girl, 15, found stabbed to death

I'm waiting tentatively on the ethnicity....whichever way man that was brutal..handle of the knife broke..!!!

Man In Custody Over Schoolgirl Stabbing
Updated:22:47, Monday June 02, 2008

A man in his 30s is being questioned by police after a 15-year-old girl was found brutally stabbed to death in the lift of a block of flats near London's Waterloo station.


The young teenager, who was dressed in her school uniform, had been the victim of an attack so ferocious that the handle of the knife used to kill her had broken off.

She suffered at least 10 stab wounds to her front, neck and back.

Her lifeless body was discovered at Matheson Lang Gardens on Baylis Road in Southwark by a woman who was getting into the lift with her child.

A man in his 30s has been arrested on suspicion of the girl's murder.

A police spokesman said: "We are keeping an open mind about motive at this early stage. However, it is not believed to be gang related."

Reporting from the scene, Sky's crime correspondent Martin Brunt said: "This is one of the areas that has recently been targeted by police in an anti-knife campaign.

"The Metropolitan police has upped its presence and brought in knife arches and weapon wands.

"But the last couple of hours suggests their efforts to tackle knife crime have not so far been working."

The London Ambulance Service was called at 3:45pm and sent a fast response car, an ambulance and an air ambulance, the first of which arrived in under four minutes.

"Sadly, despite extensive efforts to resuscitate the patient, she was pronounced dead at the scene," a spokesman said.

The victim's next of kin have since been informed.

Neighbour Sharon Moore said: "You think you are fine once you are in the building, this is the last thing you expect... I'm extremely shocked because once I'm in the door and I get in I think I am safe."

She said residents in the flats were given security fobs on Friday as part of measures to tighten up security.

"I feel very insecure and afraid for my children and for the other children in the block," she added.

The girl is the 16th teenager to be killed violently in London so far this year.

Neighbours said they believed the girl was Somalian and a pupil at the Harris Academy in Bermondsey, south-east London.

Most of the young victims of gun and knife crime in the capital have been boys or young men.

15-Year-Old Girl Stabbed To Death In Matheson Lang Gardens Southwark, South London |Sky News|UK News


This sickens me, the ******* who done this deserves to die, how can this animal do this to a young sistah?

Dawit is an Ethiopian/Eritrean name. The poor kid had to be from one of the two countries.

Rest in peace :-(

She is Eritrean.

BBC NEWS | England | London | Stabbed girl 'had been harassed'

This shows her pic..the police and council are culpable in this..wonder if it were a YT girl that had been beaten the response would have been swift...what ever happened to GBH guess the Police decide which cases to give higher priority everyone knows if stalking is not brought under control it woudl inevitably lead to murder..why can't our young men just take no for an answer???
glad I'm out of this country for a week going very far away..away from all this insanity

I just heard. I know the church they're talking about and the people who frequent it are 95% Eritrean and majority are very young and if it's anything like the church i used to be dragged too by my dad when i was younger then most of the young people go there to link with each other.

(I typed more but lost it and can't be bothered to type all of that again..... besides it was way too negative anyways.)

Must be more to the story than that.

I also get the feeling there's a lot more to the story. I guess we'll never know..........RIP.

Man you really need to check what is wrong with some people. Heard of another recent murder by some mental patient. Quite scary knowing you walk street with these people and you don't know it.

For me this again reinforces the fact that it takes someone to die before the police take it seriously enough for it to register...and I have no doubt this is simply because it becomes more of a closed case with less paperwork and less resources required to put it to bed.

Those who have been around long enough know the belief that there is this all protecting police institution ready to solve your concerns just by dialling 999 is a myth. Got Boris Johnson talking about youth crime being his top priority, excuse me, so what has the police force been doing for the last 25 years!

There are really some sick people about. I wonder what the full story is, but sometimes people just attack , because they are a few sandwiches short of a picnic. The fact that he was supposedly "obsessed" with the girl makes it almost certain that he had mental problems.

She was such a beautiful girl.

Police accused over stabbed girl
The mother of a teenage girl who was knifed to death has accused the police of failing to protect her daughter.

Arsema Dawit, 15, died five weeks after her family made a complaint of assault to the Metropolitan Police.

Tsehainesh Medhani said she was "devastated" by the death of Arsema who was found dead in a London tower block.

Thomas Nugusse, 21, of Ilford, east London, was remanded in custody by Camberwell Green magistrates until August 21 on a charge of murder.

Arsema was stabbed up to 10 times in the lift of Matheson Lang House, Baylis Road, Waterloo, where she lived.


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Tsehainesh Medhani's lawyer reads a statement on her behalf


She is believed to have just returned from school when she was attacked on Monday.

Appearing outside the family home, while a statement was read by her lawyer, Ms Medhani said she could not believe what had happened to her daughter.

"I came to this country from Eritrea to live in safety.


"When my daughter was threatened, I went to the police seeking protection. Sadly, this did not happen.

"I have lost a precious, beautiful and much-loved daughter who was kind, generous and loving.

"I feel as though a light has gone out of my life."

The Met has referred the case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

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BBC NEWS | England | London | Police accused over stabbed girl