A 21-year-old black transgender woman was stabbed to death early Monday (18 May) in Philadelphia.

London Chanel was stabbed twice in the back and once in the neck in an abandoned house at around 12.40am.

She is the eighth transgender woman of color to be killed in the US this year.

Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small told NBC10 that an argument between Chanel and her 31-year-old alleged attacker escalated into a physical fight and she was stabbed as a result.

Her assailant and a witness carried Chanel downstairs and put her on quilts outside. They performed CPR on the victim and then called the police.

Officers rushed Chanel to hospital where she was pronounced dead just after 1am.

Chanel was a native of Victoria, Texas and moved to Philadelphia several years ago.

Veronica Allen, Chanel’s mother, said her daughter’s transition had taken a toll on their relationship but they reconnected in March.

‘She was going to go to court to change her name and then she was going to come home,’ she said.

‘That’s what we were working towards, but that man took it away from me.’

‘She had a heart of gold,’ Chanel’s ‘trans sister’ Kione Seymore said.

‘She hardly ever frowned. She always had a smile on her face. Her laughter was infectious.’

A folding pocket knife was found on the alleged attacker, Small said. Both he and the witness have been taken into custody for questioning. No charges have been filed.

The investigation continues.