PLEASE ...DON'T KILL ME

Woman begged for mercy after tripping

- BY DAN WARBURTON in Huntingdon

A WOMAN cowered on the floor begging for her life as a train rampage knifeman told her: “The devil is not going to win.”

Dayna Arnold, 48, feared the worst when she fell amid the chaos on the London-bound service, as he stood over her with the blade.

Dayna had become separated from her partner, Andy Gray, 37.

She said: “Please... don't kill me. He just carried on. We feel very lucky today.”

Witnesses described passengers covered in blood from slash and stab wounds. Eleven people were injured, with an LNER rail worker in a critical condition.

A 32-year-old Peterborough man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

Witnesses described “pure panic” as the knifeman moved through the carriage, warning people to run while slashing them, sending trapped passengers fleeing down the carriage.

Some even locked themselves in toilets and cowered with makeshift weapons during the rampage.

Dayna added: “If we had been sat at the other end of the carriage, we might not have been here.”

Andy said: “I didn’t see him but I saw the knife moving, plunging.

“I pushed Dayna but we were separated. There was this young lad who was about 19 or 20. He had gashes on his arm and a severe puncture under his arm. There was a lot of blood coming out of him.

“He said, I've been stabbed, please help me'. It looked like an artery had been hit. I took off my belt and made a tourniquet. He was saying, ‘Please call my dad, I don’t want to die.”

Police confirmed the Peterborough man arrested is being treated as the only suspect. A 35-year-old from London who had also been arrested at the scene has been released.

Deputy Chief Constable Stuart Cundy said: “Specialist detectives are looking into the background of the suspect we have in custody and the events that led up to the attack.

“This was a horrific attack that has had a wide impact.