Witness heard 'death to Muslims' shout of man linked to station stabbing

A man involved in a stabbing incident at a south east London railway station was shouting "death to Muslims" and "go back to Syria", according to an eyewitness.

Miguel Oliveira, 36, said he came "face-to-face" with the attacker, who was "shouting uncontrollably" after he allegedly stabbed a man at Forest Hill station.

Mr Oliveira, a music composer from Forest Hill, said he was met with a "wave of people" when he arrived at the station following the incident.

He said: "The first few were shouting 'he's got a knife, he's got a knife' and then all of a sudden the next ones said 'Oh he's been stabbed call the police'."

He added that some members of the crowd were shouting: "He wants to kill Muslims".

Mr Oliveira left the station but returned a few minutes later amid confusion over the whereabouts of the attacker.

He said: "I doubled back and I went back to the station and actually came face-to-face with him.

"He had just come out - not the way they were saying.

"He was walking towards me and he was shouting stuff like 'Death to Muslims' and 'Go back to Syria'."

A British Transport Police spokesman said: "We are investigating the circumstances of the Forest Hill incident, but at this time we are not treating it as terrorism-related."

Mr Oliveira said he then retreated from the station.

A man has been arrested following the "serious assault" at the station, British Transport Police (BTP) said.

One man, who was injured in the attack, was treated at the scene and then taken to hospital.

A BTP spokeswoman said: "We are currently at Forest Hill railway station, after being called to a serious assault at 1.18pm.

"One person has been arrested following the incident and is currently in police custody.

"One man was treated by ambulance staff at the scene and is currently en route to hospital.

"We are still investigating the circumstances of this incident but at this time, we are not treating it as terrorism-related."

Shellby Curry, 24, from Forest Hill, was with her one-year old child when she saw a man "waving what looked to be a knife in his hand" near the station and screaming words like "Muslims f****** hate them, kill them all".

She described the attacker as a black man with short hair, who she thought appeared to be in his late 30s or early 40s.

Several people phoned the police, who arrived around ten minutes later and restrained him, Miss Curry said.

"I was walking along and someone stopped and said 'be careful, he's got a knife'. As I looked around there he was.

"I just grabbed my baby and ran across the road. Looking back [I saw] him marching up and down waving his arm about."