The victim who was attacked in Uxbridge is 21st teenager to be murdered in capital this year

This article is more than 10 months old

This article is more than 10 months old

Police have launched a murder investigation after an 18-year-old was stabbed to death in west London.

Officers were called at about 4.40pm on Thursday to reports of a stabbing at Hillingdon Civic Centre in High Street, Uxbridge. The victim was taken to hospital with a stab wound to his chest, but was pronounced dead less than an hour later.

A 17-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder, and remains in police custody for questioning. Another teenage boy suffered a non-life-threatening knife wound to his ear.

An area inside the centre has been cordoned off by police and forensic teams are working at the scene. The victim is the 21st teenager to be murdered in London this year.

DCI Noel McHugh, who is leading the investigation, said: “This is a tragic loss of life. A young man with his whole life ahead of him has been fatally attacked.”

He urged witnesses to contact police, and said the Metropolitan police were doing “everything we can to find those involved”.

Knife crime in the capital has soared in recent years, with 44,076 knife or sharp object offences recorded in the 12 months prior to June 2019 – the highest figure since comparable data was first collected in 2011.