Disturbing footage has shown the moment hundreds of passengers fled in “sheer terror” as a “marauding” knifeman moved through the carriages of an LNER train bound for London.
Anthony Williams, 33, allegedly posed a “dangerous threat” as he stalked victims “through towns and cities, on streets and trains alike” during a series of violent attacks over Halloween weekend that culminated in a mass stabbing on board the train.
The alleged attacks began on October 31 last year, when three people—including a 14-year-old boy—were assaulted in Peterborough.
Williams then travelled to London and stabbed a man on the Docklands Light Railway. On the evening of November 1, he boarded an LNER service from Doncaster to London, where ten people were allegedly attacked.
Harrowing footage shown in court captured dozens of passengers, bundled in coats and hats, running through the carriages as Williams approached them, allegedly “slashing and stabbing with his knife”.
One clip showed train crew member Samir Zitouni attempting to defend himself with a frying pan as Williams held a large knife in front of him. The court heard that Mr Zitouni was eventually stabbed several times.
The CCTV showed a man clutching the left side of his face, which appeared to be bleeding. Mr Zitouni approached Williams, placed a hand on the injured passenger and urged him to sit down while shouting at the attacker and holding the frying pan.
Anthony Williams, who denies 14 counts of attempted murder, pictured on the LNER train moments before the mass stabbing on November 1, 2025
CCTV shown to the court captured the moment Williams caused passengers to flee in “sheer terror” as he walked through a carriage carrying a large knife
Williams was earlier seen at Peterborough railway station, where the court heard he boarded a London-bound train at 8.20pm on November 1, 2025
A court sketch of Anthony Williams, 33, who is accused of carrying out a stabbing rampage
A second man standing behind Mr Zitouni held a toaster, apparently preparing to use it against the knifeman.
In another clip shown to jurors, apparently filmed shortly before the attack began, Williams is seen entering Carriage J and taking a bladed object from his pocket.
Holding it in his right hand, he approaches a passenger wearing a hooded top from behind before suddenly stabbing him.
Within seconds, dozens of passengers stand and rush towards both ends of the carriage. Some appear to fall onto seats as they try to escape.
The attacker then moves towards the door leading to the next carriage, swinging a large knife in front of the passengers.
Those able to get away run in the opposite direction. Williams turns to watch them as they flee, continuing to hold the weapon aloft.
A second recording from Carriage J, filmed from another angle, shows the attacker calmly walking through the carriage with the knife. Those running for their lives included pensioners and a young child.
The court heard that some passengers hid in toilets, storage cabinets or beneath seats, while others showed “extraordinary bravery” by grabbing “frying pans and toasters” in an attempt to keep Williams at bay.
One of those passengers suffered multiple injuries after grappling with Williams, who allegedly asked him: “Do you want to die?”
The attack ended only because of the “quick thinking of the train driver”, who diverted the service to Huntingdon. Hundreds of passengers then ran along the platform before Williams was arrested.
Prosecutor Christopher Paxton KC told Cambridge Crown Court: “Across the Halloween weekend last year, to the many people he encountered, the defendant Anthony Williams posed a dangerous threat, marauding through towns and cities, on streets and trains alike, armed with a knife.
“He stabbed many, seeking to end their lives with deadly intention, striking out at them when they were defenceless and afraid.”
The jury heard that Williams had admitted attacking people with a knife and “intended to cause them really serious harm”, but denies 14 counts of attempted murder.
Williams appeared before the court by videolink from the high-security Rampton Hospital in Nottinghamshire.
He wore a standard-issue grey sweatshirt and occasionally put on glasses while sitting in a pale grey room with legal papers in front of him.
An intermediary assisted him. Jurors were told the intermediary was present “when the defendant needs help to understand what’s being said”.
Mr Justice Calver told jurors they would have to determine whether Williams intended to kill the people he allegedly attacked, as the prosecution claims.
The alleged “rampage” began on October 31, when the 14-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was stabbed at a footbridge in Peterborough.
Two men—Dawid Taborski and William Ogelby—were then attacked nearby but escaped injury.
A 17-year-old boy was later stabbed in the face while travelling on the Docklands Light Railway in east London, at Pontoon Dock.
Armed police were called to Huntingdon railway station on the evening of November 1 last year
CCTV image of Williams holding a knife inside the Ritzy Barber Shop on Queen’s Walk in Peterborough last year, hours before the train rampage
Williams then boarded an LNER train at 7.26pm on November 1, carrying a “large kitchen knife and a bottle of fortified tonic wine”. The court heard that the other ten alleged attempted murders took place on that service.
Describing the passengers’ reaction when the attack began, Mr Paxton said: “In sheer terror, the train passengers ran for their lives, hiding in locked toilets, store cabinets or beneath seats, while many fleeing from the defendant literally ran out of the train.
“Trapped and facing the defendant, who was wielding, slashing with and stabbing with his knife, some tried to defend themselves and others on the train. They showed extraordinary bravery, picking up frying pans or toasters to hold him back, and even attempting to calm the situation by asking why he was doing it and telling him that they loved him.
“But to no avail. The defendant continued his knife attack, slashing and stabbing at those around him.”
Among the victims was “defenceless and powerless” 73-year-old David Presland, who was attacked after falling to the floor.
Scott Green was sitting with his dog, Poppy, and was so afraid for his life that he tried to seize the knife blade.
Another passenger, Kevin Deely, suffered stab wounds to his scalp and a four-inch-deep cut to his stomach.
Mr Paxton said that, on a moving train, there were “only so many places you can hide”. Some passengers, he added, “stood tall” by defending themselves and risking harm to protect strangers.
Among them was Stephen Crean, who was “half in and half out of a buffet serving area” when he decided Williams was “on a mission” and that he “had to try and stop it”.
CCTV captured the moment Mr Crean launched himself at the attacker and grappled with him along the carriage. He suffered injuries to his hand, head and lower back.
Jurors were earlier told that Williams asked Mr Crean: “Do you want to die?”
Train crew member Samir Zitouni tried to stop Williams with a frying pan but was stabbed several times, the court heard.
The bloody attack ended when the train stopped at Huntingdon and Williams was arrested.
The jury heard that Williams had admitted affray and possessing a knife in connection with an incident at the Ritzy barbershop in Peterborough, which occurred shortly after the three alleged attempted murders.
He was seen “swigging from a bottle of alcohol” before entering the shop with the kitchen knife. Those inside moved away from him, after which Williams left.
Williams then went to Peterborough railway station, where the court heard he boarded a London-bound train at 8.20pm.
A female passenger, Kierah Lee Oakman, became concerned by his “erratic” behaviour, which included muttering words such as “devil” and “power”.
After Williams approached her, she got off at St Neots in Cambridgeshire and texted British Transport Police. Officers were sent to the next stop, Stevenage.
There, officers saw someone matching Williams’s description get off about 150ft away and cross the tracks. However, they decided not to follow because of the danger posed by passing trains, Mr Paxton said.
“It’s likely this person, dressed all in black, was the defendant,” the prosecutor added.
Williams later stole a pack of kitchen knives from an Asda store in the town, an offence he had admitted, the jury was told.
Later that night, 17-year-old Isaiah Idris was attacked on a DLR train but escaped when it arrived at Pontoon Dock station.
The teenager said his attacker “sliced my face” and hands as he tried to defend himself, repeatedly asking: “Are you beefing with the devil?”
Mr Idris, now 18, underwent surgery on his hand and was discharged from hospital after four days.
Footage shown to the jury showed Williams standing and walking along the carriage, taking an object from his right pocket as he moved.
A second camera angle provided a clearer view of what appeared to be a knife.
Williams approached an unseen person and appeared to shout at them before jabbing the object forward. He then quickly placed it back in his pocket.
The court also heard that Williams had admitted common assault in connection with a later incident in the early hours of November 1, when he was travelling back to Peterborough by train and spat at passenger Jordan Morley.
Williams subsequently called his bank, Capital One, to report that he had lost his debit card. He set off again at 6.16pm, travelling to Peterborough station before boarding the LNER service at 7.26pm. The train made an unscheduled stop at Huntingdon at 7.44pm.
“In those 15 or so minutes, this defendant, armed with a knife, caused terror and fear on an unimaginable scale,” Mr Paxton said.
He added: “Those on the train posed no threat to the defendant and, even if he viewed them as the devil, as he had suggested to Isaiah Idris earlier that day, that gave him no lawful reason to attack any of those passengers.”
Describing the moments before the attacks began, Mr Paxton said Williams was “talking and gesticulating with his hands and swigging alcohol from a bottle”. At times, he appeared unsteady on his feet, the jury heard.
The first victim, Jonathan Gjoshe, was “stabbed a number of times” in the upper right arm and chest. He jumped over a table to escape before shouting to fellow passengers: “Just run, just run… I’ve been stabbed.”
Describing the pain from his injuries as “unreal”, he asked paramedics at Huntingdon station: “Am I going to die today or not?”
Williams then turned on Sachin Balakrishnan and “tried multiple times” to stab him. The jury was told that “it was only his reflexes that saved him”.
Mr Balakrishnan, who had been speaking to his partner on the phone, escaped the “hand-to-hand fighting” and warned other passengers: “Everyone, there’s a guy with a knife.”
He suffered a wound to his right forearm and another to his chest. The chest injury punctured his left lung and came within about an inch and a half of his heart, Mr Paxton said.
The trial, which is expected to last six weeks, continues.
