West Midlands Police have charged a man with the murder of Jacob Billington who was one of the members of the public who were stabbed in Birmingham City Centre during a one-person knife rampage.
The horrific stabbing spree unfolded during the early hours of Sunday morning as local emergency services personnel flooded the area with over 15 emergency ambulances being sent as part of the West Midlands Ambulance Service Response.
Zephaniah McLeod, 27, of Nately Grove, Selly Oak, Birmingham, is also accused of the attempted murder of the seven other victims.
McLeod will appear before Birmingham Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday morning.
Jacob, 23, died after being attacked in Irving Street while enjoying a night out with school friends.
Jacob was visiting Birmingham with some other friends who are students in the city when he was savagely attacked.
A post mortem concluded he died as a result of a deep stab wound to the neck.
A 23-year-old man, who was seriously injured in Irving Street, remains in hospital in a critical condition.
A 22-year-old woman, attacked in Hurst Street, remains in a critical but stable condition in hospital.
Another man, aged 30, remains in a serious condition in hospital, while four others have been discharged.
Detective Chief Inspector Jim Munro, who is leading the investigation, said:
“Since these tragic events unfolded in the early hours of Sunday morning, we’ve had a team of officers working non-stop on the investigation.
“Our driving focus is to secure justice for the victims, their family and friends. Our sympathies remain with everyone who’s been impacted by these terrible crimes.
“Our investigation continues and I would urge any witnesses who’ve not yet spoken to us, or anyone with information they feel could help, to get in touch.”
Suzanne Llewellyn, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor of CPS West Midlands, said:
“Following an incident in Birmingham city centre in the early hours of 6 September 2020, the Crown Prosecution Service has authorised West Midlands Police to charge Zephaniah McLeod, 27, with one count of murder and seven counts of attempted murder.
“This decision was made following careful consideration of the evidence presented to us by West Midlands Police as a result of their ongoing investigation.
“Our thoughts remain with the families and friends of the victims affected in this incident.”
Anyone with information, photos or video footage which could help the investigation can get in touch with us via this dedicated web link: https://mipp.police.uk/operation/20HQ19G54-PO1
How can you help Emergency Services News?
You can follow Emergency Services News on Twitter, and you can also subscribe, for free, to our Newsletter, which includes a daily digest of our top stories and videos.
You can also find us on YouTube and LinkedIn.
We have also just launched a brand new podcast show that is available on Spotify.
Before you go...
We need your help. As former emergency services & armed forces personnel, we pride ourselves on bringing you important, fast-moving and breaking news stories & videos which are free from the negative bias which is often directed at the emergency services & NHS by some sections of the mainstream media.
One of the reasons we started 'Emergency Services News' back in 2018 was because we became tired of reading badly informed stories about the emergency services & NHS which seemed only ever to highlight negative aspects of the job.
We want to be the unheard voice of the remarkable men and women who serve in the emergency services, NHS and armed forces. And with around 500k page views each month, we are getting there!
As income from ads, the mainstay source of income for most publishers, continues to decline; we need the help of you, our readers.
You can support emergency services news from as little as £1. It only takes a minute. Every contribution, however big or small, is vital for our future.
Please help us to continue to highlight the life-saving work of the emergency services, NHS and armed forces by becoming a supporter.
