A 19-year-old man, Rakeem Thomas, has been acquitted of attempted murder following a stabbing incident that took place on a train in south east London. The violent encounter, which occurred on March 27, 2024, between Shortlands and Beckenham Junction, was captured on video and later went viral online, shocking the public.
The video, which shows passengers screaming “f****** stop it” as the stabbing unfolded, led to Thomas’s arrest and subsequent charge of attempted murder.
The trial at Inner London Crown Court began on Monday, September 9, with prosecutor Michael Williams explaining that the altercation started from a chance encounter between Thomas and the victim, a man in his 20s. During the confrontation, Thomas allegedly stabbed the victim multiple times. After fleeing the scene, Thomas was reportedly heard telling his mother over the phone, “it was either him or me.”
A witness, who filmed the incident on his phone, testified in court that he initially recorded the video to assist police and “to post the video on social media to make people aware of what’s happened and what kind of country we live in.” The witness described seeing the two men wrestling before the fight escalated, with the victim eventually ending up on the floor. Thomas, whom the witness described as “the attacker,” pulled out a “Rambo-style knife” and repeatedly stabbed the victim while he was on the ground.
The witness estimated the victim was stabbed “definitely more than 20 times,” and said passengers, including a woman with a small child, backed away in fear during the incident.
Thomas was arrested the following day and claimed self-defence, stating that the victim had previously stabbed him in 2020 or 2021. He told police the knife was brought to the scene by the victim, and that he managed to grab it in a panic during the struggle.
During the trial, Thomas maintained that he was acting out of fear for his own life, stating that he blacked out during the attack and could not recall how many times he had stabbed the victim.
The jury ultimately accepted Thomas’s claim of self-defence, acquitting him of all charges, including attempted murder, wounding with intent, and affray, which related to the fear caused to other passengers on the train.
The case, which drew significant public attention due to the viral video of the stabbing, has now concluded, with Thomas walking free after being cleared of all charges.
