Young stab victim wants police station open later

Police have since arrested four males aged between 14 and 16, who are currently on police bail. But the incident has again stoked up the long-running campaign to extend the opening hours of the Manchester Road station, which is currently only open from 10am to 6pm.

Hanif, who lives just a few steps from where the incident occurred on September 12, told The Wharf of the ordeal which saw him hospitalised for several days.

He said: "It was Ramadan and I had gone out to pray. I got a bus afterwards to Harbinger and went to a PC shop with my mate. I went back to his area, and got the D7 bus back to my house at around 11pm.

"I'd just got off the bus and turned a corner, and they just jumped me. I'd seen four of them on the bus before. Two girls who were passing helped me to one of the houses, and called the ambulance.

"Unfortunately, there is no CCTV around this spot, and the police station is not open 24 hours."

Blackwall and Cubitt Town councillor Tim Archer invited shadow home secretary Chris Grayling to meet Hanif and his father Faruk this week, after a morning meeting with borough commander Paul Rickett.

Cllr Archer - who is the Conservative challenger for the Poplar and Limehouse seat - stated that police station opening hours were still a pressing concern for island residents.

He said: "When I'm knocking on doors, people keep saying the same thing. We need our own station open because it's a long way for a copper to come from Greenwich or Limehouse.

"Also, I feel that the worry over the police station is shorthand for the fact that residents don't see a lot of police on the beat in the Isle of Dogs.

"This incident took place practically on the doorstep of the station."

While Mr Grayling admitted services were "under huge financial pressure", he pledged to "strip away some of the paperwork and bureaucracy so that the neighbourhood police can be out in the community". He also called for tougher sentencing on knife crime.

He said: "You can't remove all discretion, but in most cases if you're caught carrying a knife, you should go to prison. That way, you can create some sort of deterrent."

Detective chief superintendent Rickett claimed his meeting with the politicians was "very productive" and gave him the chance to "highlight the constant challenges" of driving down crime. But he revealed that any increase in opening hours over in Manchester Road "would mean abstracting officers and staff from other duties".

He said: "Whilst I will keep the matter under review, my professional judgement is that at the moment, with the current levels of demand and usage of the front office facility, this would not be in the best interests of the borough's policing performance and partnership priorities."