London stabbings: 2018's tragic toll of lost lives 

An alarming spike in violent crime on the streets of London has seen the capital’s murder rate overtake New York for the first time ever.

Scotland Yard has launched 55 investigations into suspected murders in London this year already. At least 35 of those killed were stabbed to death.

The rising wave of knife crime saw six stabbings in 90 minutes in the capital last Thursday, with a 13-year-old left fighting for his life after an attack in Newham, east London.   

In the latest violent attack, a man was at the Stratford International Docklands Light Railway station.

The victim, whose injuries are not thought to be life-threatening, was attacked shortly before 9am.

British Transport Police said officers were called to reports of a serious assault and that a cordon had been put in place while an investigation took place.

No arrests have been made. 

Here is a full list of the homicide investigations carried out by the Metropolitan Police this year.  

Scotland Yard has launched a total of 55 investigations into suspected murders in 2018. At least 35 of those killed were stabbed to death.

Here is a list of the cases:

December 31 2017: Kyall Parnell, 17, died from a single stab wound to the heart in Norwood Road, Tulse Hill. Mr Parnell was one of three people to be stabbed on New Year’s Eve, but the investigation into his death was officially launched by the Metropolitan Police the following day.

January 1 2018: Steve Frank Narvaez-Jara, 20, was the first person to be murdered in 2018, in the early hours of the morning on January 1, at a flat near Old Street station.

January 3: Elizabeta Lacatusu, 44, a Romanian national, was stabbed to death in Norfolk Road, Ilford, east London.

January 6: Vijaykumar Patel, 49, died after sustaining critical injuries outside a shop in Mill Hill, north London. Police believe an altercation may have started after three teenage boys were refused from buying cigarette papers, over concerns about their age.

January 8: Daniel Frederick, 34, was stabbed close to where he lived in Shakespeare Walk, Stoke Newington. He later died in hospital.

January 9: Oluwadamilola Odeyingbo, 18, died in a south London hospital, hours after being stabbed in Empress Drive in Chislehurst.

January 11: Harry Uzoka, 25, was stabbed to death in Shepherd’s Bush, west London. The singer MNEK later tweeted to say he had met the young model several times and was ‘shocked’ by his death.

January 24: Seyed Khan, 49, was found dead in Ilford Cemetery on February 1, after last being seen at his home in Thamesmead eight days earlier.

January 28: Yaya Mbye, 26, was taken to hospital after being found with stab wounds at the George Downing Estate in Stoke Newington, and died shortly afterwards.

January 29: Juan Olmos Saca, 39, was fatally stabbed during an altercation at an address in Atwell Road, Peckham. He eventually died from his injuries on February 4.

January 31: Lily Mai Saint George, aged 11 weeks, died after police were called to reports of an unresponsive baby at an address in Belmont Road, Haringey. The infant was taken to hospital for treatment, but died two days later on February 2. A 20-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman were interviewed under caution, but no arrests have been made over her death.

January 31: Khader Saleh, 25, was stabbed to death at Wormwood Scrubs prison in west London, where three other inmates have since been charged over his death. A fourth prisoner was questioned and released under investigation.

February 3: Kwabena Nelson, 22, a youth worker from Tottenham, sustained multiple stab wounds in St Mary’s Close in Haringey.

February 3: Hasan Ozkan, 19, died after being stabbed multiple times in Abbey Road, Barking. Police believe Mr Ozkan was ‘singled out’ by a group who wished to cause him harm.

February 9: Hannah Leonard, 55, was stabbed to death at a flat in Camden. Two people have since been charged with her murder.

February 11: Sabri Chibani, 19, was attacked at a house near Streatham Common, before staggering outside and collapsing in the street. A post-mortem investigation found the Italian national had died from a stab wound to the chest.

February 12: Bulent Kabala, 41, was shot in what police believe was a ‘targeted hit’ in the Cockfosters area of north London. Three or four men were believed to have attacked Mr Kabala from a UK van with Polish number plates, which was later found abandoned nearby.

February 13: Saeeda Hussain, 54, was found with fatal head injuries at an address in Staines Road, Ilford, and pronounced dead at the scene.

February 14: Lord Promise Nkenda, 17, was stabbed to death in Goldwing Close, Canning Town. Five people have so far been arrested over his murder.

February 15: Mark Smith, 48, was found at an address in Warren Road, Chingford, where he died of multiple injuries following a suspected attack. Police have since charged a 38-year-old woman with his murder.

February 17: Jozef Boci, 30, died several days after being violently attacked in Greenwich. Six men were later charged over his murder.

February 18: Lewis Blackman, 19, known to friends as Dotz, was stabbed at an address in Kensington. Six people have since been charged over his death.

February 19: Rotimi Oshibanjo, 26, was stabbed in Halliday Square, Southall. A 39-year-old man has since been charged with his murder.

February 20: Abdikarim Hassan, 17, was the first of two young men to be stabbed in the Camden area on February 20, in what police believe may have been linked attacks.

February 20: Sadiq Aadam Mohamed, 20, died at the scene where he was stabbed in Bartholomew Road, Camden, shortly after the murder of Abdikarim Hassan in Kentish Town.

February 20: An unidentified man, 24, was shot in Old Pye Street, Westminster, and was later taken to hospital. He remained in a critical condition for over a month, until he succumbed to his injuries and died on March 27.

February 25: Michael Boyle, 44, from Galashiels, Scotland, was stabbed at the Sir Robert Peel pub in Southwark, and died several days later in hospital, on March 10.

March 1: Christopher Beaumont, 42, was stabbed in Melrose Gardens, Hammersmith. Police and paramedics tended to his injuries, but were unable to save him and he was pronounced dead at the scene. A 32-year-old man has since been charged with his murder.

March 5: Kelva Smith, 20, was fatally stabbed outside a nursery in Albert Road, South Norwood. A 14-year-old boy has since been charged with his murder.

March 5: Laura Cecilia Navarrete De Figueira, 47, was stabbed to death at her home in Twickenham, and her husband and two children were later found dead at the foot of cliffs 80 miles away in Birling Gap, East Sussex.

March 5: First child of Laura Cecilia Navarrete De Figueira found dead at Birling Gap, East Sussex.

March 5: Second child of Laura Cecilia Navarrete De Figueira found dead at Birling Gap, East Sussex.

March 8: Kelvin Odunuyi, 19, became the first teenager to die from gunshot wounds after he was killed outside the Vue Cinema complex in Wood Green. It is believed his assailants fled the scene by moped.

March 12: Nikolay Glushkov, 68, was found dead at his home in New Malden. A post-mortem investigation later found the Russian exile had died as a result of ‘compression to the neck’.

March 13: Julian Joseph, 36, was attacked on a bus on Alpha Road, New Cross, and died after succumbing to a serious head injury 11 days later on on March 24.

March 14: Lyndon Davis, 18, was assaulted on Padnall Road, Chadwell Heath, and was later found suffering from a stab wound on nearby Nash Road. He died at an east London hospital a few hours later.

March 14: Joseph Williams-Torres, 20, was sat in a stationary vehicle when he was shot dead in Forest Road, Walthamstow last month.

March 17: Russell Jordan Jones, 23, was one of two people who were stabbed and shot in an attack in South Street, Enfield. He died at the scene, but a second victim was taken to hospital and later discharged.

March 18: Tyrone Silcott, 41, was stabbed on Towpath Walk in Hackney. A 28-year-old man was later charged with Mr Silcott’s murder.

March 18: Hersi Hersi, 36, who was living as a trans woman named Naomi, was found with knife injuries at an address near Heathrow Airport in Hounslow, and pronounced dead at the scene 30 minutes later.

March 19: Balbir Johal, 48, was stabbed in Marlborough Road, Southall, on March 19. He died in hospital a short time later. Two men have been charged over the murder.

March 19: An unidentified man, 41, was stabbed in Vallentin Road, Walthamstow. Three people, including a 17-year-old boy, have since been charged over his death.

March 20: Beniamin Pieknyi, 21, was stabbed to death at the Stratford Centre shopping complex in east London. Five people have since been charged with his murder.

March 25: Abraham Badru, 26, was the former recipient of a police bravery award after he intervened during a rape, and later testified against the attacker. He was shot near his home at Ferncliff Road, Hackney, last month.

March 26: David Potter, 50, was found with a stab injury to the neck at a residential address on Tooting High Street, and was pronounced dead at the scene.

March 26: An unidentified man, 59, was taken to hospital with blood gushing from his nose and later died from his injuries following a suspected assault in Stern Close, Barking.

March 29: Reece Tshoma, 23, was attacked and stabbed in Nathan Way, Thamesmead, before being driven to hospital by a friend. He died from his injuries later the same evening.

March 30: Leyla Mtumwa, 36, was stabbed at an address in Kirkstall Avenue, Haringey. A 38-year-old man has been charged with her murder.

March 31: An 80-year-old woman died after being reportedly pushed over in Camden Road, north London. She was admitted to hospital and later discharged, before being admitted to a second hospital, where she died on April 3. A 29-year-old man has since appeared in court over her death.

April 1: Devoy Stapleton, 20, was stabbed on Ellerton Road, Wandsworth on Easter Sunday.

April 2: Tanesha Melbourne, 17, was gunned down in Chalgrove Road, Tottenham, on the evening of April 2.

April 2: Amaan Shakoor, 16, became the youngest murder victim of the year so far when he was shot in an attack in Markhouse Road, Walthamstow, on the same evening as teenager Tanesha Melbourne.

April 4: An unidentified man, 37, was stabbed during a suspected burglary in Hither Green, south-east London. The 78-year-old resident of the house is under investigation for the man’s murder. A second suspected burglar remains on the run, and the elderly suspect has been released on bail, pending further enquiries.

April 4: An unidentified man, 53, collapsed following a suspected altercation in Clapton, north-east London. Police attended to the man at a bookmakers in Upper Clapton Road, and he was treated by paramedics, but pronounced dead at the scene. No arrests have been made over his death.

April 4: Israel Ogunsola, 18, was stabbed near the junction of Link Street and Morning Lane, near Homerton station in Hackney. Police officers assisted paramedics, but were unable to revive the victim and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Two other young people, both aged 17, were arrested on suspicion of murder.