The trial of 33-year-old Anthony Williams is underway at Cambridge Crown Court, where he stands accused of 14 counts of attempted murder.
Ten of these relate to passengers who were stabbed on a train north of London on 1 November last year.
“He marauded through towns and cities, on the streets and trains alike, armed with a knife,” said prosecutor Christopher Paxton KC, according to Daily Mail.
Williams has admitted that he attacked the passengers and intended to cause them serious harm. However, he denies that he intended to kill them. It is now up to the jury to decide, and the trial is expected to last over six weeks.
Williams is a British citizen and was born in the UK. He is from Peterborough and is described in the British media as a black British man. His religion has not been disclosed. The police have found no links to terrorism or organised crime, and believe he acted alone.
The motive remains unclear.
Shortly after the attack, some people claimed online that the perpetrators were African immigrants. This was not true. A report that someone shouted “Allahu akbar!” on the train has also never been confirmed. Witnesses are said to have heard Williams talk about “the devil”.
Williams is following the trial via video link from Rampton Hospital, a high-security hospital. Earlier this year, his defence lawyer said that a psychiatrist had concluded he was psychotic and not fit to stand trial.
The four other attempted murders took place before the train incident. In Peterborough on 31 October, a 14-year-old boy was stabbed on a footbridge, and two men were attacked but not injured. In the early hours of 1 November, a 17-year-old was stabbed in the face and on the hands on a train in London.
Williams has admitted to stealing kitchen knives from an Asda store in Stevenage. On the evening of 1 November, he boarded the train from Doncaster to London at 7.26 pm. Within about fifteen minutes, ten people were attacked.
“In sheer terror, the train passengers ran for their lives,” says Paxton.
Samir Zitouni, who was working on the train, tried to fend Williams off with a frying pan and was stabbed several times. One passenger held up a toaster; another is reported to have been asked if he wanted to die. Sachin Balakrishnan was stabbed in the chest, puncturing his left lung, around four centimetres from his heart.
The train was stopped outside its scheduled stop at Huntingdon at 19.44, and Williams was arrested. He has pleaded guilty to, amongst other things, intentionally causing grievous bodily harm to the victims, but not to attempting to kill them.
