Man accused of stabbing 10 on train told passengers 'I am the baddest'

Summarised from 3 outlets · 4 reports · Updated 3 Nov, 22:09 · Archive

Anthony Williams, 33, is alleged to have stabbed 10 people on a train and denies 13 attempted murder charges.

Anthony Williams, 33, denies attempting to murder 10 people on an LNER train in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire on 1 November last year. He also denies attempting to murder three people in Peterborough on 31 October and a 17-year-old boy, Isaiah Idris, on a DLR train in London in the early hours of 1 November.

At Cambridge Crown Court on Monday, passengers gave evidence about Williams's behaviour the day before the alleged train attack. Passenger Ethan Daniels described Williams's conduct on a southbound train from Peterborough on the evening of 31 October as 'erratic' and said he was 'in fear for my safety'. Mr Daniels said Williams appeared to reach for a black bag and said 'I'm going to do it', before throwing the bag away saying 'no, I can't do it'. He said Williams was playing 'what I would describe as Halloween music' from his mobile phone.

Another passenger, Abbie Harrison-Evans, said Williams was 'playing spooky Halloween music from his phone' and was 'shouting I am the baddest'. She said her 'first impression was he was suffering from a mental condition'. Ms Harrison-Evans said Williams kept grabbing a black rucksack on the seat next to him and saying 'I'm going to do it', adding 'it looked like he was reaching for something inside the black rucksack'.

During the alleged attack on the DLR train, a witness told the court Williams asked his victim if he wanted 'beef with the devil' before stabbing him. The witness said they saw Williams 'grab his waistband and pull out a knife and stab him'. Jurors heard Williams 'slashed' the boy around the face, and that Idris sustained a 'deep cut to his lips and hands'. The witness added there was 'blood everywhere' and described the knife as 'a machete', though said 'in the moment the knife came out it was so sudden'.

Williams denies all charges against him.

How it is being reported

• 'Do you want beef with the devil?' Train attacker told victim before stabbing him, court hearsA man who stabbed a teenage boy on a DLR train in London asked his victim if he wanted "beef with the devil", a court heard today. Anthony Williams, 33, denies attempting to murder Isaiah Idris in the early hours of November 1 last year on a DLR train heading to Pontoon Dock station. He further denies 13 additional counts of attempted murder relating to three people in Peterborough on October 31, and an attack on 10 people on a London-bound LNER train on the evening of November 1. Giving evidence at Cambridge Crown Court, one witness said: "I saw him [Williams] grab his waistband and pull…GB News · 3 Nov, 16:03
• Train knifeman appeared to believe 17-year-old victim was the devil, court hearsA man who stabbed a teenager on a train in London appeared to believe the boy was the devil, a court has heard.Sky News · 3 Nov, 13:00
• Huntingdon train stabbing accused said ‘I am the baddest’, before knife attack court toldAnthony Williams is alleged to have paced up and down a train saying "I am the baddest", the day before he is claimed to have stabbed 10 people on a LNER serviceThe Mirror · 2 Nov, 14:43
• Man who stabbed 10 on train said 'I am the baddest', court hearsA man who stabbed 10 people on a train said "I am the baddest, no-one is as bad as me" as he paced up and down on a different train the day before, a court has heard.Sky News · 2 Nov, 14:37

In this story: Anthony Williams · Isaiah Idris · Cambridge Crown Court · Huntingdon · Cambridgeshire · Peterborough · London · Pontoon Dock

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