Anthony Williams denies attempted murder as train stabbing trial opens
Prosecutors told a Cambridge court that Williams attacked passengers on a Doncaster-to-London train after alleged assaults elsewhere over Halloween weekend 2025.
Anthony Williams went on trial at Cambridge Crown Court on 28 October 2026 over alleged knife attacks on a Doncaster-to-London train and elsewhere in England during Halloween weekend 2025. Prosecutors say 10 people were stabbed aboard the train; Williams denies 14 charges of attempted murder, according to AFP.
Williams, 33, accepted at an earlier hearing that he attacked the people named in the charges and intended to cause them serious harm. He disputes the prosecution's claim that he intended to kill them, Metro reported. That distinction is central to the attempted-murder case now before the jury.
What prosecutors allege happened before the train attack
Prosecutor Christopher Paxton told the court that Williams attacked people in Peterborough on the evening of 31 October 2025, including a 14-year-old boy whom he allegedly stabbed. The prosecution also described an attack on a 17-year-old boy at a Docklands Light Railway station in London. AFP reported the prosecution's allegation that four people were stabbed before the train attack the following evening.
Paxton characterised Williams as a dangerous threat across streets and trains during the Halloween weekend. That account is the prosecution's case, which the trial has yet to determine. Williams has denied intending to kill the people he attacked.
How the Doncaster-to-London train was stopped
The prosecution says Williams stabbed 10 people on the LNER service on the evening of 1 November 2025. As passengers tried to escape, some hid in locked toilets, storage areas or under seats, Paxton told the court. Others tried to fend him off with objects including pans and toasters. The driver made an emergency stop at Huntingdon, where armed police attended, AFP reported.
Train worker Samir Zitouni, 48, was critically injured while trying to protect passengers with a frying pan, according to the prosecution. Paxton said some passengers had run through the train until they could go no farther. Metro separately reported his description of a ripple of fear spreading through the carriages as people fled or tried to protect others.
The court was shown video of a passenger trying to wrestle the knife from Williams, AFP reported. The trial is expected to last six weeks. The jury must decide the disputed question of intent as well as the charges arising from the alleged attacks.
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Sources and context
- ‘Do you want to die’: UK train stabbing suspect wounded 10, court hearsAFP, republished by The Straits Times
- Huntingdon train attacker asked man 'do you want to die?' during knife rampageMetro
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.