Yahoo Finance Finsbury Park stabbing: Police hunt van driver after killing of delivery rider
Police are hunting a van driver believed to have been involved in the killing of a delivery rider in London on Friday.
Takieddine Boudhane, 30, was stabbed to death in Finsbury Park after being involved in an altercation with the driver of a white van at the junction of Lennox Road and Charteris Road.
Scotland Yard said the Deliveroo and Uber Eats delivery rider had been riding his motorcycle at the time.
The van, a white VW Caddy, was found in Islington on Sunday and taken to a police compound where a forensic examination will take place.
Detective Chief Inspector Neil John appealed for anyone who witnessed the altercation to come forward, including those with mobile phone footage.
“The driver and person believed responsible for this tragic matter is now the subject of a police manhunt,” he said.
“At this time I am unable to release any further information concerning the identity of the driver as this may hinder the ongoing police investigation.
“The incident itself appears to have been spontaneous and not connected to, or as a result of, anything other than a traffic altercation.”
Mr Boudhane was an Algerian national who had been living in the UK for about three years.
His stabbing sparked the Metropolitan Police’s first murder investigation of 2020 after officers were called at about 6.50pm on 3 January.
The London Ambulance Service also attended the scene, where the victim was pronounced dead at 7.42pm.
Although formal identification has yet to take place, Mr Boudhane’s next of kin have been informed.
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Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose constituency includes Finsbury Park, visited the scene on Saturday and called for better protection for delivery drivers.
“People should not be carrying knives. A human life has been taken,” Mr Corbyn told reporters.
Fellow delivery riders, who had gathered in nearby Stroud Green Road over the weekend, claimed Mr Boudhane had been a victim of a road rage attack following an altercation.
Sourin Aydi said Mr Boudhane was his “best friend”, telling reporters at the scene on Saturday: “I can’t believe it, I did not sleep last night. He was a wonderful man, funny with a great sense of humour and always laughing.”
No arrests have been made and inquiries continue, the Metropolitan Police said.
