Football fan tried to stop train attack, jury hears
Quick Look
Stephen Crean testified at Cambridge Crown Court that he tried to stop Anthony Williams, accused of attempting to kill 10 people on a York to London King's Cross train on 1 November, describing the attacker as "on a mission" and grappling with him near the buffet car before calling 999 from a locked toilet.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The article reports on testimony at Cambridge Crown Court regarding an incident on 1 November on a York to London King's Cross LNER train that made an unscheduled stop in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. Anthony Williams, 33, of Langford Road in Peterborough, denies 10 counts of attempted murder and four other alleged attempted murders in earlier incidents in Peterborough and London.
A football fan who tried to stop the man accused of trying to kill 10 people on a train said the attacker was "on a mission", a court heard.
Stephen Crean said he attempted to stop Anthony Williams from using a knife on a train, which had to make an unscheduled stop in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, on 1 November last year.
Cambridge Crown Court heard Crean describe his grapple with Williams as "like Come Dancing, we were all over the place", before he called 999 from a locked toilet.
Williams, 33, of Langford Road in Peterborough, denies 10 counts of attempted murder, and four other alleged attempted murders in earlier incidents in Peterborough and London.
Jurors have already heard accounts from five people Williams is accused of attempting to murder, on the York to London King's Cross LNER service, which had just left Peterborough station.
In a video recorded interview played to the court, Crean said he remembered choosing his carriage deliberately "because I knew it wasn't far from the buffet car" and he bought a meal deal for £6.
He recalled a young girl who ran past him saying there was a man with a "big knife".
Jurors have been shown CCTV footage that shows Crean was by a door of the buffet car when he encountered Williams.
Crean said Williams asked him, "Do you want to die?", adding that he "pulled out a blade from nowhere", describing it as "quite a big kitchen knife, I'll never forget it".
He said people were "struggling to get the buffet door shut", but when he "heard it click, happy days, then I went towards him [Williams]".
Crean, who was wearing Nottingham Forest clothing, said he grappled with Williams to "stop him" using the knife.
He said his fingers were cut and Williams was "twisting and turning" the knife.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The trial will continue with further witness testimony and a verdict will be reached.
Very likely · Within weeks
Open Questions
- What was the outcome of the trial?
- What was the motive behind the alleged attacks?
- Were any of the 10 people on the train injured?
- What happened in the earlier incidents in Peterborough and London?
