Scotland Yard have said a 17-year-old boy found stabbed in the street on Monday was the 18th teenager to be murdered in London this year.

In all of 2014, there were 11 teenagers murdered in the capital.

In the latest case, police were called just before 9pm on Monday by members of the public where the teenager was found, in Yoke Close, off North Road in Holloway, north London.

Paramedics tried to save the teenager’s life but he was declared dead at the scene at 9.22pm.

There has been growing concern this year at an increase in youth violence in the capital. According to figures from the Metropolitan police, 16 teenagers have been killed in non-domestic incidents this year. Of those, 14 deaths were the result of stabbings. Another two teenagers were believed to have been killed by their father.

The stabbing on Monday evening was the fourth of a teenager in the north London borough of Islington.

Detectives from homicide and major crime command have launched a murder inquiry and no arrests have yet been made. Police are yet to name the latest victim but say his family have been informed.

The area is a typical inner London mix of council estates and private homes whose prices are rising.

In a statement, the Met said: “Police were called at approximately 20:50hrs on Monday 23 November to reports of a male stabbed in Yoke Close, off North Road, N7. London Ambulance Service and land HEMS also attended and the male – aged 17 – was pronounced dead at the scene at 21:22hrs. Officers believe they know the identity of the deceased and next of kin have been informed.

“Officers from homicide and major crime command investigate and retain an open mind to the motive at this time. At this early stage, anyone with information is asked to contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

The scene of the murder is just off Caledonian Road, a main road running from King’s Cross northwards. In September, an 18-year-old youth was jailed for life for stabbing Alan Cartwright, 15, to death as he rode his bicycle on Caledonian Road.

Police chiefs say there has been a rise in violence in London this year. The Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, has ordered an increase in the use of stop and search in certain areas, with police hoping it may catch offenders and act as a deterrent. The home secretary, Theresa May, has criticised this approach, saying there is no link between a rise in violence and a decline in the use of stop and search.

In June, Hogan-Howe told the BBC: “Over the last three months there has been a rise in stabbings and that has caused us to review our position on stop and search … If we are getting to the stage where people think they can carry knives with impunity, that can’t be good for anyone.”

In October, the Met commissioner said rising recorded knife crime had led the force to increase the use of stop and search in the majority of London’s 32 boroughs and that it had also started to use powers allowing stops without reasonable suspicion.



The number of stops had been going down since 2011 after concerns that very few detected crime and instead damaged community relations.