Man killed and nearly decapitated with axe

LONDON - Police have found the body of a near-decapitated man in his 60s who was killed in the street yesterday by an attacker who repeatedly hit him on the head with an axe.

Witnesses described the victim crying for help and trying to deflect the blows during the attack in the Swiss Cottage area of north west London.

Scotland Yard said police had no knowledge of any relationship between the two men, despite one witness reporting that they appeared to know each other.

It is claimed that the killer was heard to shout "you've had this coming for 20 years" before launching his attack.

Police were unable to comment on whether the attacker, aged in his 30s, was receiving mental health treatment. The two health trusts that cover the area where the attack happened said they were unaware of any of their patients being involved.

Witnesses described the attack in Eton Avenue, which happened at about 9.30am local time.

A scaffolder working near by said: "A man with an axe ran at his victim and just laid into him. He brought it down on his head and floored him. The victim had tried to defend himself with his arms and I heard him shout something. But it was hopeless.

"Within seconds, he was on the floor and his head had been split open. It was horrific."

Margaret Mikkelsen, 29, told how people confronted the axeman and tried to stop him.

She said: "I heard shouts and I saw a couple who had stopped their cars and were shouting at the man who was just standing there with an axe.

"He was just standing there, I could see the victim was dead and he was lying face down.

"A man who lives in my building was telling him to put the axe down then two men grabbed scaffolding poles to try to stop him hurting anyone else. But he didn't respond to all the people shouting at him."

Nick Blackford, 20, a student who was woken by screaming, said: "The police came out and arrested him at gunpoint. He had blood on his hands. He dropped the axe on the floor.

"There was a dustbin lid on the floor. I think either he was using it or more likely the victim was using it to protect himself. The victim was on the floor. I saw a guy lying down with a huge flat red mushy mess instead of a head, just across the road.

"I didn't notice it at first because it was there on the street, not in a book or a film. I was so taken aback that I had to second take. It is horrific. You never want to have to see that situation. It shocked me quite a lot."

Mr Blackford said the attacker "looked really calm and precise. He didn't seem that bothered about being arrested."

Police said the victim suffered "severe head injuries" but sources said he was not beheaded. A suspect was arrested at the scene and was being questioned last night.

- Independent