Forensic teams work at the scene at Huntingdon railway station, where a London-bound train stopped after several people were stabbed. Photo by Tayfun Salci/EPA
Nov. 2 (UPI) — Two suspects have been arrested in Saturday night’s mass stabbing incident on a British train, police said Sunday, while dismissing concerns it was a terror attack.
Officers were called at 7:42 p.m. local time Saturday to respond to reports of multiple people stabbed on board the 6.25 p.m. train from Doncaster to London King’s Cross station, British Transport Police said in a statement.
The train was forced to stop in the small town of Huntingdon, where police and paramedics boarded the train.
The two suspects were arrested within eight minutes of the first 911 call, police said.
Police described the suspects as a 32-year-old Black man and a 35-year-old man of Caribbean descent, both of whom were natural-born British nationals.
They have been detained on suspicion of attempted murder and remain in custody for questioning.
In total, paramedics took ten people by ambulance to a local hospital and another later self-presented. Four victims have been discharged but two people remain in life-threatening condition.
Witnesses described seeing bloody handprints as panic spread through the train cars in comments to The Guardian.
“We declared a major incident yesterday and Counter Terrorism Policing were initially supporting our investigation however at this stage there is nothing to suggest this is a terrorist incident,” police superintendent John Loveless said. “This is a British Transport Police investigation.”
Loveless’ comments came after British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood urged people not to speculate about the attack.
The train station in Huntingdon remains closed and police said riders can see increased police presence throughout the train service on Sunday.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the stabbing an “appalling incident” and “deeply concerning” in a statement on social media, while former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said it happened on a line he uses regularly.
“My thoughts are with all those affected, and my thanks go to the emergency services for their response,” Starmer said. “Anyone in the area should follow the advice of the police.”