Knife crimes soared to new record high in 2019 – up seven per cent

Knife crime in England and Wales hit a record high in the year to September, up by 7 per cent on the previous 12 months.

Police-recorded offences involving a knife or sharp instrument rose to 44,771, figures released today by the Office for National Statistics shows.

But the total number of homicides recorded by police fell by 6 per cent, from 654 to 617. There was also a 20 per cent drop in homicides where a knife or sharp instrument was used, to 221 offences, mainly driven by a decrease in London. 

The figures prompted Barnardo’s chief executive Javed Khan to reiterate calls for the Government to take ‘urgent action’ to ‘break the spiral of violence’. 

And they come after a wave of bloodshed on the street of the capital last year, which saw 147 murders, in a total compiled by MailOnline. 

Figures from the Crime Survey for England and Wales, also released today alongside the police recorded statistics, showed continued rises in overall fraud, with a 9 per cent increase – to 3.8 million offences – in the year ending September 2019, driven by a rise in ‘bank and credit account fraud’.

All other main crime types measured by the CSEW showed no change, including lower-harm violent offences.

Knife crime offences recorded by police in England and Wales hit a new record high in the year ending September 2019

The ONS report separated the types of crime. This graphic shows clear increases in knife crime and fraud

Helen Ross, from the ONS Centre for Crime and Justice, said: ‘In the last year, there has been no change in overall levels of crime, however, this hides variations in different types of crime.

‘For example, there have been continued rises in fraud, vehicle offences and robbery, and decreases in burglary and homicide.

‘Although the number of offences involving a knife has continued to increase, there is a mixed picture across police forces – and overall levels of violence remain steady.

‘We have also seen the number of homicides where a knife or sharp instrument was used decrease by a fifth, driven by falls in London.’

The figures released today come from two main sources of crime data, the Crime Survey for England and Wales and police recorded crime. 

The figures released today come from two main sources of crime data, the Crime Survey for England and Wales and police recorded crime

They do not include Greater Manchester Police, which records data differently. 

The rise in robberies was ‘evident for the fourth consecutive year’, the ONS said, with a 12% increase to 82,542 offences.

The ONS report said: ‘While recording improvements are likely to have contributed to the rise, some of the increase is likely to reflect a real change.’

The number of crimes of violence against a person rose by 12% in the 12 months to just over 1.6 million.

Vehicle offences also rose 4% to 441,351, ‘continuing the rising trend seen over the last three years’, the ONS said.

But the number of burglaries recorded by police fell by 4% to 380,567 offences, while the number of gun crimes remained almost identical to the previous year at 6,144.

Criminal damage and arson fell by 2% to 531,662 offences, while criminal damage to a vehicle dropped 7% to 196,790 offences.

In total, police-recorded crime rose by 7% to almost 5.8 million.

Excluding fraud and computer misuse offences, this stood at just over five million, an increase of 5% from the previous year.  

The youngest victim last year in London was Riley Fauvrell, who died aged just five days after being delivered in Thornton Heath, South London, when his mother Kelly Mary Fauvrelle (left), 26, was stabbed to death. The oldest victim was Dorothy Woolmer (right), 89, murdered in Tottenham in August

Barnardo’s chief executive Javed Khan said it was ‘unacceptable that the knife crime crisis continues to destroy so many young lives’ and reiterated warnings that this was a symptom of a ‘much wider, complex problem’, adding: ‘Urgent action must be taken to break the spiral of violence.

‘The Government needs to work with children’s services, charities, social workers, youth workers, the criminal justice system and communities to tackle this crisis.’ 

In figures recorded by MailOnline last year, the number of murders in London was at its highest level in more than a decade with 147 recorded – more than half of whom were stabbed.

September and June were the joint bloodiest months of the year in the capital with 17 homicides each, followed by July which had 16 and March and December with 15.

Among the teenagers killed in London in 2019 were Jaden Moodie (left), 14, on January 7 in Waltham Forest; while Baptista Adjie (right), 15, was stabbed to death in Stratford in October

The year began with two murders in the first six hours of 2019, with Tudor Simionov (left), 33, and Charlotte Huggins (right), 32, killed in Mayfair and Camberwell respectively

The 2019 rate broke last year’s total of 133 by early December – and is the highest level recorded since 2008 when Scotland Yard investigated 154 deaths.

The total includes murders and manslaughters recorded by the Met, British Transport Police and City of London Police.

The youngest murder victim was Riley Fauvrell, who died aged just five days after being delivered by an emergency C-section in Thornton Heath, South London.

Riley’s mother Kelly Mary Fauvrelle, 26, was stabbed to death in June while pregnant with him. Her ex-partner Aaron McKenzie, 25, has since pleaded not guilty to murder.

The oldest victim was Dorothy Woolmer, 89, who was raped and murdered at home in Tottenham in August. Reece Dempster, 23, was charged but has not yet pleaded.

Some 17 of the victims were children – including 12 teenagers and five youngsters aged under two – and the mean average age of all 147 people killed was 32.

The year began with two murders in the first six hours of 2019 on New Years’s Day, with Tudor Simionov, 33, and Charlotte Huggins, 32, killed in Mayfair and Camberwell respectively.

January was the second quietest month for murders with only eight – above only October, which saw six. The final month of the year saw 14 homicides. 

The last person to be killed in London in 2019 was music producer Flamur Beqiri, 36, who was murdered in front of his wife and child on Christmas Eve in Battersea.  

• Charlotte Huggins, 32, Jan-01, Camberwell
• Tudor Simionov, 33, Jan-01, Mayfair
• Simbiso Aretha Moula, 39, Jan-04, Rainham
• Sarah Ashraf, 35, Jan-06, Isle of Dogs
• Jayden Moody, 14, Jan-07, Waltham Forest
• Asma Begum, 31, Jan-11, Canning Town
• Kamil Malysz, 34, Jan-27, Acton
• Nedim Bilgin, 17, Jan-29, Islington
• Carl Thorpe, 46, Feb-04, Highgate
• Lejean Richards, 19, Feb-05, Battersea
• Dennis Anderson, 39, Feb-10, East Dulwich
• Bright Akinlele, 22, Feb-18, Camden
• Brian Wieland, 69, Feb-19, Chingford
• Glendon Spence, 23, Feb-21, Brixton
• Kamali Gabbidon-Lynck, 19, Feb-22, Wood Green
• David Lopez-Fernandez, 38, Feb-25, Tower Hamlets
• Che Morrison, 20, Feb-26, Ilford
• Jodie Chesney, 17, Mar-01, Harold Hill
• Elize Linda Stevens, 50, Mar-02, Hendon
• Jolia Bogdan, 3 months, Mar-02, Croydon
• Mohamed Elmi, 37, Mar-03, Soho
• Laureline Garcia-Bertaux, 34, Mar-06, Kew
• David Martinez, 26, Mar-06, Leyton
• Antoinette Donnegan, 52, Mar-07, Battersea
• Ayub Hassan, 17, Mar-07, West Kensington
• Florin Pitic, 20, Mar-10, Brent
• Nathaniel Armstrong, 29, Mar-16, Fulham
• Abdirashid Mohamoud, 17, Mar-22, Isleworth
• Ravi Katharkamar, 54, Mar-24, Pinner
• Ramane Richard Wiggan, 25, Mar-27, West Norwood
• Zahir Visiter, 25, Mar-28, Regents Park
• Gavin Garraway, 40, Mar-29, Clapham
• Calvin Bungisa, 22, Apr-01, Kentish Town
• Hubert Hall, 60, Apr-02, Walthamstow
• Annabelle Lancaster, 22, Apr-07, Enfield
• Noore Bashir Salad, 22, Apr-08, Manor Park
• Gopinath Kasivisuwanathan, 27, Apr-16, Wembley
• Steven Brown, 47, Apr-17, Stoke Newington
• Meshach Williams, 21, Apr-23, Harlesden
• Mihrican Mustafa, 38, Apr-26, Canning Town
• Henriett Szucs, 34, Apr-26, Canning Town
• Amy Parsons, 35, Apr-26, Whitechapel
• Joshua White, 29, Apr-26, Hackney
• Tashaun Aird, 15, May-01, Hackney
• Constantin Sin, 51, May-05, Leytonstone
• McCaulay Urugbezi-Edwards, 18, May-05, Southwark
• Barrington Davis, 54, May-16, Lewisham
• Vladimir Koudriavtsev, 69, May-23, Kensington
• Tatiana Koudriavtsev, 68, May-23, Kensington
• Iderval da Silva, 46, May-25, Battersea
• Alimal Islam, 23, May-26, Tower Hamlets
• Ismaila Ceesay, 33, May-28, Forest Gate
• Steven Kennedy, 61, May-30, Plaistow
• Graham Howe, 53, May-30, Harrow
• Baris Kucuk, 33, Jun-01, Haringey
• Adrian Murphy, 43, Jun-04, Battersea
• Cheyon Evans, 18, Jun-14, Wandsworth
• Eniola Aluko, 19, Jun-14, Plumstead
• Gleb Stanislavovitch Zhebrovsky, 34, Jun-15, Tower Hamlets
• Giedrius Juskauskas, 42, Jun-16, Stratford
• Stepan Suslyk, 40, Jun-16, Notting Hill
• David Bello-Monerville, 38, Jun-18, Barnet
• Ionut Manea, 63, Jun-18, Ilford
• Edward Simpson, 25, Jun-21, Feltham
• Yusuf Mohamed, 18, Jun-26, Shepherds Bush
• Kelly Mary Fauvrelle, 26, Jun-29, Croydon
• Riley Fauvrelle, 5 days, Jun-29, Croydon
• Ian Taylor, 54, Jun-29, Lambeth
• Fuad Habib, 28, Jun-29, Newham
• Gary Blagrove, 44, Jun-29, Fulham
• Amara Toure, 18, Jun-30, Southwark
• Tesfa Campbell, 40, Jul-03, Wandsworth
• Craig Walters (Craig Small), 32, Jul-05, Wembley
• Amanda Gretton, 57, Jul-05, Blackheath
• Grineo Daka, 27, Jul-07, Leyton
• Kwasi Mensah-Ababio, 26, Jul-08, Wembley
• Leo Marcus, 22, Jul-10, Kidbrooke
• Boluwatife Oyewunmi, 22, Jul-11, Enfield
• Kye Manning, 19, Jul-11, Croydon
• Akbar Arezo, 64, Jul-12, Whitton
• Layla Arezo, 74, Jul-12, Whitton
• Aron Kato, 28, Jul-17, Ilford
• Diane Dyer, 61, Jul-18, Beckenham
• Abdullahi Hassan, 20, Jul-25, South Hampstead
• Robert Komuro, 41, Jul-23, Hillingdon
• Liam Dent, 25, Jul-26, Chessington
• Alciveadis Mauredis, 60, Jul-31, Islington
• Dorothy Woolmer, 89, Aug-03, Tottenham
• Mohammed Shah Subhani, 27, Aug-05, Hounslow
• Alex Smith, 16, Aug-12, Camden
• Solomon Small, 18, Aug-15, Lambeth
• Amrou Greenidge, 18, Aug-20, Fulham
• Allan Isichei, 69, Aug-24, Southall
• Santino Angelo Dymiter, 18, Aug-26, Newham
• Lee Casey, 39, Aug-29, Brixton
• Unnamed child, 15 months, Aug-27, Putney
• Laura Rakstelyte, 31, Aug-29, Ilford
• Perry Jordan-Brammer, 15, Aug-30, Tottenham
• Sandra Samuels, 45, Aug-31, Hackney
• Norman Bertran-Tavarez, 24, Sep-01, Southwark
• Michael Irving, 15, Sep-03, Stratford
• Unnamed man, 20s, Sep-08, Lewisham
• Sahkira Mercedes Gwendolin Loseke, 20s, Sep-08, Chalk Farm
• Wilson Alexandre Garcia Varela, 24, Sep-09, Kentish Town
• Josiph Beker (Youssef al-Bayjani), 17, Sep-10, Edgware Road
• Unnamed girl, 8 weeks, Sep-12, SE16
• Assad Abdullah Yarow, 25, Sep-12, Camden
• Omar Smith, 34, Sep-13, Lewisham
• Unnamed girl, 16 months, Sep-13, Plaistow
• Julio Gomes, 29, Sep-14, Edmonton
• Mark McCann-Barrett, 33, Sep-17, Walthamstow
• Serafima Meshaka, 58, Sep-18, Ealing
• Sufi Osman, 22, Sep-23, Southall
• Tashan Daniel, 20, Sep-24, Hillingdon
• Osvaldo Carvalho, 22, Sep-24, Ealing
• Arlene Williams, 46, Sep-28, Enfield
• Baptista Adjie, 15, Oct-10, Stratford
• Clinton Evbota, 18, Oct-10, Camberwell
• Ben Lines, 20, Oct-13, Bexley
• Zoe Orton, 46, Oct-21, Deptford
• Beatrice Yankson, 59, Oct-26, Islington
• James Amadu, 26, Oct-31, Enfield
• Vladislavs Radionovs, 57, Nov-02, Ilford
• Hakim Ishmael Daba Sillah, 18, Nov-07, Uxbridge
• Mohammed Mirza, 19, Nov-19, Ilford
• Iron Miah, 40, Nov-19, Whitechapel
• Randy Skuse, 27, Nov-23, Whitechapel
• Akeem Dylon Barnes, 24, Nov-24, Ilford
• Mehran Heydari, 26, Nov-24, Ealing
• Justin Bello, 38, Nov-25, Neasden
• Jack Merritt, 25, Nov-29, London Bridge
• Saskia Jones, 23, Nov-29, London Bridge
• Exauce Ngimbi, 22, Dec-05, Hackney
• Mohammed Abdullah Al Araimi, 20, Dec-06, Knightsbridge
• Crossland Davis, 20, Dec-06, Greenwich
• James O’Keefe, 47, Dec-09, Hornsey
• Dmytro Balaban, 28, Dec-14, Brent
• Viorel Stefan, 49, Dec-14, Dagenham
• Albert Amofa, 33, Dec-15, Croydon
• Lee Styles, 39, Dec-18, Surbiton
• Ebrima Cham, 35, Dec-19, Hounslow
• Michael Paul Baptista, 24, Dec-19, Walthamstow
• Arber Fesko, 30, Dec-19, Barnet
• Unnamed boy, 16, Dec-19, Dagenham
• Lashawn Williams, 29, Dec-21, Newham
• John Kennett, 60, Dec-23, Thornton Heath
• Flamur Beqiri, 36, Dec-24, Wandsworth

The 2019 London murder rate of 137 broke last year’s total of 133 by early December – and is the highest level recorded since 2008 when Scotland Yard investigated 154 deaths