Boy, 10, 'stabbed in neck' in spate of Leicester street attacks Published duration 20 January

image copyright Leicestershire Police image caption Police have released a CCTV image of a man they are "extremely keen to speak to"

A 10-year-old boy was "stabbed in the neck while his mum parked her car", a witness has said.

The child was attacked by a man in Belper Street, Leicester, on Saturday afternoon.

Police are now linking the stabbing with two other attacks in the same area just days beforehand.

Detectives have released a CCTV image of a man they want to speak to and warned people to call 999 "immediately" if they see him.

On 14 January, a woman in her 30s felt something at the back of her head as she walked with her children in Doncaster Road at about 19:15 GMT.

She turned to see a man with a knife running away.

The woman was taken to hospital and treated for a cut to the back of her head.

image caption Vijay Khuti said at first he thought it was a car accident

Two days later, a man in his 70s was found with wounds to his head and hands in Dean Road and was taken to hospital.

Both have since been discharged.

The 10-year-old was then stabbed at about 17:20 on Saturday.

Witness Vijay Khuti said he was first on the scene after hearing shouts outside his home.

He went out to find a woman in the middle of the road, screaming "my boy is hurt".

He said, while pressure was put to his neck wound, the boy told him a man had approached from behind and stabbed him in the neck while he waited for his mum to park.

image caption The attacks all happened in the Belgrave area of Leicester

Police would not confirm where the boy was stabbed but said he remained in hospital in a stable condition.

The boy's mother was not injured.

Mr Khuti said: "People are scared to get out their front door, they can't believe anything like this could happen.

"At the time I thought the boy was 13 but I later learned he was 10, that's shocking."

Det Insp Tim Lindley said: "These are serious incidents and we have a team of dedicated officers and staff carrying out full enquiries to establish the full circumstances.

"In light of these incidents, I would ask that people do remain aware and vigilant."

image caption Police are appealing for witnesses

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Related Topics Leicester