18-year-old Afghan refugee stabbed to death in UK

LONDON

An Afghan teenager who came to the UK as a refugee was stabbed to death in southwest London, local media reports said Thursday.

Hazrat Wali, an 18-year-old student at Richmond Upon Thames College, was attacked during a fight in Craneford Way, Twickhenham on Tuesday.

“Hazrat was a very good boy. He came here to study, he was living all on his own in London. His immediate family are all back in Afghanistan,” a relative was quoted as saying by the Evening Standard.

“I saw him in hospital. He had a fight is all that I’ve heard.”

The victim was attacked during a fight on a footbridge and later he collapsed in the playing fields in Craneford Way. He died of his wounds an hour later despite first aid efforts from a teacher who was on the field with his student.

Police on Wednesday evening named Wali as the victim of the attack.

“We are still working to establish the motive behind this tragic attack and are following a number of leads,” said Detective Chief Inspector Vicky Tunstall from the Specialist Crime Command.

She said: “Officers have recovered CCTV from the area and spoken to a number of witnesses who described seeing a fight in the moments before Hazrat was attacked.

“We know a lot of people were on the field at the time and I’d urge anyone who has not yet spoken to police to contact us immediately.”