Stratford Centre stabbing: Man held over killing of Beniamin Pieknyi at east London shopping centre

Robin de Peyer26 March 2018
WEST END FINAL

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A man has been arrested over the murder of a 21-year-old who was stabbed to death in an east London shopping centre.

Romanian Beniamin Pieknyi, from Milton Keynes, is said to have been chased and stabbed at the Stratford Centre on Tuesday night.

A 22-year-old man was arrested on Saturday and remains in custody over the incident.

London Ambulance Service attended the Stratford Centre following reports of a disturbance at around 9.30pm.

'Really kind': Beniamin Pieknyi was stabbed after apparently stepping in to help a friend

But the victim was pronounced dead one hour later.

His killing was the eighth in London in the space of just a week as the capital was hit by a shocking spike in violent crime.

“He was really kind, and always trying to help everybody," friend Ion Robert told the Standard.

"He gave his life to save his friend… He died in the arms of his best friend.

“These guys were trying to attack his friend and he intervened – he was trying to save his friend’s life.”

Detective Chief Inspector Will Reynolds said: "It is believed that the victim and a friend were involved in an altercation with a large group of young males before he was stabbed in the shopping centre.

"I would like to make a direct appeal to all those in that large group to come forward and speak to police. It could be that you witnessed the incident and we need to eliminate you from the investigation as soon as possible.

"The shopping centre was busy at the time of the incident and a number of witnesses have already come forward to help police with investigations. We are grateful for this assistance and for those who provided emergency first aid to the victim.

"Anyone with any information about the murder, please contact our incident room on 020 8721 4005."

Anyone with information should contact police on 101 quoting CAD 7391/20 March or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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