Two held over Oxford Street murder

8:17am Wednesday 14th May 2008

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Police are questioning two men in connection with the murder of a man fatally stabbed in Oxford Street.

Steven Bigby, 22, from Hackney, north London, was stabbed in the chest on Monday afternoon in a row that erupted after a drink was thrown.

Two men, aged 18 and 19, were arrested on Tuesday night and are being held at an east London police station, a Metropolitan Police spokesman said.

A post-mortem examination at Westminster Mortuary confirmed the victim died of a single stab wound to the heart.

It has also been reported that Mr Bigby was awaiting trial for the rape of a 16-year-old girl and that, in a separate case, he was due to go on trial for wounding with intent and violent disorder.

The murder was the latest in a spate of stabbings and homicides which prompted police to step up the fight against knife crime.

A stop and search team of 15 officers was deployed on the streets of the capital on Tuesday night, the first of up to 10 squads that will hit knife-crime hotspots across London in the coming days.

Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Tim Godwin said the "fairly-in-your-face" policing would be intelligence-led and with the support of the community, with whom they had shared information.

Police will be able to stop and search people under Section 60 of the Public Order Act, which does not require reasonable suspicion.

The Home Office has provided an additional 100 knife arches and 200 wands for the operation.

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