Conservative MP dies after being stabbed multiple times - police arrest man

A Conservative MP has died after being stabbed multiple times.

Sir David Amess, MP for Southend West in Essex, was attacked on Friday (15 October) at Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea.

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The incident happened at his constituency surgery when a man walked in and stabbed him multiple times.

Essex Police confirmed that they had arrested a man and recovered a knife at the scene.

Sir David, 69, had been an MP since 1983.

What Essex Police said

In a statement, the force said: “A man has been arrested on suspicion murder after a man was stabbed in Leigh-on-Sea.

“We were called to an address in Eastwood Road North shortly after 12.05pm today (Friday 15 October).

“We attended and found a man injured.

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“He was treated by emergency services but, sadly, died at the scene.

“A 25 year-old man was quickly arrested after officers arrived at the scene on suspicion of murder and a knife was recovered.

“He is currently in custody.

“We are not looking for anyone else in connection with this incident.”

Reaction from Westminster

Carrie Johnson, the Prime Minister’s wife, tweeted: “Absolutely devastating news about Sir David Amess.

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“He was hugely kind and good. An enormous animal lover and a true gent. This is so completely unjust. Thoughts are with his wife and their children.”

Conservative MP and former Cabinet minister Andrea Leadsom tweeted: “I can’t bear it. One of the loveliest men I’ve met, and so kind and generous.”

Brendan Cox, widower of late Labour MP Jo Cox, who was murdered in an attack in 2016, described the stabbing of Sir David Amess as “as cowardly as it gets”.

He tweeted: “Attacking our elected representatives is an attack on democracy itself. There is no excuse, no justification. It is as cowardly as it gets.”

Eyewitness: ‘We knew something serious had happened’

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One witness called the incident “very distressing” and described seeing someone being taken out of the building and put into the back of a police car, before he was asked to leave the area.

“At that point obviously we knew something serious had happened,” he told LBC.

“Within five minutes we’d been informed by someone who was actually in the building what had happened and apparently he (Sir David Amess) had been stabbed quite a few times. It‘s very distressing that’s for sure.”

He added: “It’s a nice area… it’s not something that you’d see happening round this area that’s for sure.

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“It’s just a residential street with a Methodist church on the road and you don’t often hear of things like this going on down this way.

“To have it next door to where you’re working is obviously very upsetting and very unlike what it’s like round here. It’s very odd and it’s very distressing, that’s for sure.”

A version of this article originally appeared on NationalWorld.com

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