Man arrested over fatal 'road-rage' stabbing

A man was arrested yesterday after a motorist was stabbed to death in a quiet residential street during what police described as a "savage and brutal" attack.

A man was arrested yesterday after a motorist was stabbed to death in a quiet residential street during what police described as a "savage and brutal" attack.

The victim, thought to be 22, was driving through Ilford, east London, when he was involved in a "minor collision" with another vehicle.

After being pursued down the street, he drove a further 200 yards before pulling over and walking out of the car with his hands raised above his head saying: "Let's talk about this."

As many as three men subsequently attacked him. He struggled to escape as he was repeatedly kicked, punched and stabbed with a knife.

Residents in the street gave the man first aid while they waited for an ambulance to take him to hospital where he died from his injuries. Police arrested a 36-year-old man yesterday afternoon in connection with the incident, which happened at about 7.30pm on Tuesday in Argyle Street.

Detective Chief Inspector David Brown said: "This is one of the most serious incidents you can imagine. The victim had numerous stab wounds.

"He's fallen to the ground and he has been jumped on and stamped on and has been kicked as if he was a football. What appears to have started off as a minor altercation over a road traffic collision then escalated into what can only be described as a savage and brutal attack on an innocent motorist."

The victim has not been formally identified but he is thought to be a man from Kosovo who was living in the Ilford area with his family.

Meanwhile, residents of the street described their shock at the killing. "I was sitting in the garden when I heard a bash," said one resident, who did not want to be named.

"The front car then reversed back and sped off down the road. The other car followed. My friend then saw that they had got out the cars and were beating him up. He went down to help him and stayed with him until an ambulance arrived. He was in a bad way."

Tokhi Mirwies, 36, who lives in the street, described how his mother had seen the victim emerge from his car with his hands raised above his head.

"When he got past the junction, he got out the car and just held up his hands and said 'Let's talk about it'," he said.

"When he saw them coming, he ran off to one of the houses. He was trying to get away and they stabbed him."

Another resident Gian Singh Basi, 74, who has lived in the street for 27 years, also described how young members of his family were traumatised having witnessed the attack.

"My grandsons were playing outside when they came to tell me that there was a fight," he said. "My granddaughter, who is 10, saw everything. She saw them attack him and then him lying in a pool of blood."

The incident appears to be the latest in a growing number of road-rage attacks across the country. Earlier this month, a motorist was stabbed to death in Hove, East Sussex, after a minor accident with two other drivers in the early hours of the morning.

Days earlier, a man in his forties was stabbed in Birmingham during an altercation with the driver of a BMW.

Last month, Jamie Hughes, 30, a rugby player from Carlisle, almost bled to death after he was stabbed during an argument with another motorist as he returned from work.

Police appealed last night for all witnesses to the attack to come forward with information.

The victim was driving a silver Vauxhall Vectra, while the second car was described as a blue Ford Fiesta with the registration number T729 COO.