A second person has been arrested over the murder of 17-year-old Jodie Chesney, who was stabbed to death in a London park.

The Metropolitan Police said the male was detained in London on Friday morning and is being questioned on suspicion of murder.

A 20-year-old man in Leicester was arrested on Tuesday over Jodie's death and remains in custody.

The age of the latest suspect has not been released by police.

Image: Two people have been arrested over Jodie's murder

The new arrest comes a day after Jodie's father urged his daughter's killer to give themselves up after she was fatally stabbed in the back in Romford, east London, last Friday.


Speaking to Sky News, Peter Chesney said: "Someone knows who did this. Just do the right thing.

"You'll never know the pain you've caused and the beauty you've taken away.

"They've destroyed something beautiful here. It's a disgrace."

Jodie's dad: 'Beauty has been taken away'

Mr Chesney - whose daughter was murdered on his birthday - described Jodie as the "nicest person ever" and insisted she "wouldn't have done anything to deserve this".

She had been playing music with five of her friends in the park in Harold Hill when they were approached by two males.

One of them stabbed Jodie in the back before the pair fled the scene without saying anything.

Image: Jodie was playing music with friends in a park when she was attacked

Describing the aftermath of the attack, Mr Chesney told Sky News: "Her friend told me she screamed for about a minute and then fell down.

"But then the shock kicked in and she was moaning and groaning for the next half an hour or so and died in the ambulance."

He said the family was finding it especially difficult to understand why someone would target Jodie.

"The problem with this - what makes it so hard - is that there's no reason, we don't know why - no motive," he added.

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Image: Jodie had recently visited Downing Street with the Scouts

Detective Chief Inspector Dave Whellams said: "This was a savage, evil attack. We're progressing well with the investigation and continue to ask the public to assist us.

"At this time, there being no clear motive is very unusual. We retain an open mind and can't rule anything out."

Image: Friends and family of Jodie took part in a march in Romford

Jodie's family joined friends and neighbours on a march in Romford on Thursday evening in a show of solidarity following her murder.

Many were wearing purple, Jodie's favourite colour, while some gathered at Romford police station to demand that authorities provide more front-line officers to tackle the scourge of knife crime.

At least 39 people have been stabbed to death across the UK so far this year amid a surge in violence.

On Thursday, a teenager died after being knifed in the chest in West Kensington, west London - the sixth person to be fatally stabbed in the UK in the space of a week.

Police chiefs are due to give the home secretary their assessment of how much extra money they need to launch an emergency surge against knife crime.

Sajid Javid gave chief constables until Friday to get back to him with a calculation of the funding required to deploy additional officers into knife crime hot spots to combat the rise in violence.