Nottingham: Teenage family victims of attacks speak of ‘senseless murder’ | UK news

The family of a university student killed in the Nottingham attacks have described their “utter devastation” at the “senseless killing of our son”.

Barnaby Webber, 19, was “a beautiful, brilliant, bright young man with everything to look forward to in life”, his family added.

Read the latest story here: A school nurse was named as the third victim

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Webber’s parents David and Emma Webber and younger brother Charlie said in a statement: “Total devastation is not enough to describe our pain and loss at our son’s senseless murder.

“Barnaby Philip John Webber was a beautiful, brilliant, bright young man who had everything to look forward to in life.

“A talented and passionate cricketer who was over the moon selected for his college cricket team.

“At 19, he was just beginning his journey into adulthood and was developing into a wonderful young man.”

His parents added that they were “extremely proud of everything he achieved” and said his brother is “incredible” and asked for privacy as a family.

Webber and university student Grace Kumar were involved three people died in the attacks early Tuesday morning, as the police continue questioning a 31-year-old man on suspicion of murder.

Tributes have also been paid to Miss Kumar, 19, who played for the England under-18 hockey team and was a “talented” cricketer.

The hockey star and cricketer was ‘fiercely competitive’ and ‘talented’

Woodford Wells Cricket Club in Essex described Miss Kumar as a “fiercely competitive, talented and dedicated cricketer”.

England Hockey paid tribute to Miss Kumar, saying: “We are all deeply saddened by the news of the tragic death of Grace Kumar in Nottingham on Tuesday.”

They described her as a “popular member of the England U16 and U18 teams” and said their thoughts are with Ms Kumar’s family, friends and team-mates.

The suspect is also suspected of killing a third victim – a 50-year-old man – after stealing his van and driving it over people.

Police declared a major incident after two students were found dead in the street on Ilkeston Road just after 4am.

Officers were then called to Milton Street, in the city centre, where a driver had attempted to run over people in a van, leaving one person in a critical condition and two others with minor injuries.

Members of the public found a 50-year-old man dead from knife wounds on nearby Magdala Road.

The video appears to show the suspect on the ground next to the van when police arrested him. Pictures of the vehicle show small cracks in the windshield and obvious damage to the bumper.

Read more:
A timeline of how the “major incident” unfolded
A witness describes a “scream” as the van hit two people
What we know about the attack so far

Hours after the attacks, at around 12.30pm on Tuesday, armed police cordoned off Ilkeston Road, where students were stabbed, Sky correspondent Becky Johnson said.

He said the two young women were put in the back of a marked car after officers showed up at the commercial property.

The students arrived at the vigil at St. Peter’s Church later on Tuesday, leaving flowers for the victims.

Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan also paid tribute to Webber, describing him as “a young cricketer who has gone far too soon”.

A pair of “attacker stabbed in black”

An eyewitness told the BBC that he saw a man and a woman being stabbed on Ilkeston Road at around four in the morning.

He said he heard “horrible, blood-curdling screams” and there was “a black man dressed all in black with a hood and a backpack, struggling with some people.”

He said the woman screamed for help.

“I saw him stab first the boy and then the woman. The stabbing was repeated – four or five times. The boy fell in the middle of the road,” the witness said.

“The girl stumbled towards the house and didn’t move. The next moment she had disappeared by the side of the house, and that’s where she was found.

“I’d say it all happened in five or six minutes. The attacker then just walked up Ilkeston Road towards the town, as calm as anything.”

The man called the police, who arrived in about five minutes before paramedics tried to revive the couple for 40 minutes.

Victim found in “pool of blood”

Another witness, who gave her name as Frances, told Sky News she heard a sudden bang and a scream as a white van ran over people in the city centre.

He said he “crossed the road at the Theater Royal and got about 10 meters down the road when all of a sudden you heard a bang – which sounded like a vehicle hitting a bollard”.

“I turned around and saw those two people on the floor, in the road,” he added.

“Someone yelled, I think a gentleman also ran to help.”

Petra Gyuricska, 39, said she found the 50-year-old’s body in a “pool of blood” on Magdala Road when she went to work with her husband.

They both live in the area and spotted the body near the tennis club.

“I thought he was homeless and then I saw the blood. I tried to call the police,” he told Sky News.

He said officers attempted CPR on the victim, who had more than one chest wound.