Nottingham attacks: City centre vigil to honour victims

A city centre vigil is due to take place to honour the victims of a series of attacks in Nottingham, as police continue to question the suspect.

Families of the two students who died on Tuesday were joined by thousands at a University of Nottingham campus vigil on Wednesday.

Barnaby Webber and Grace O'Malley-Kumar, both 19, were fatally stabbed as well as 65-year-old Ian Coates.

A second vigil will be held in Old Market Square from 17:30 BST.

A 31-year-old man remains in custody after being arrested on suspicion of murder shortly after the attacks, which saw three other people injured - one critically - when they were hit by a van.

Custody rules state police can hold people for up to 96 hours if they are accused of a more serious offence, such as murder, before they must be charged or released.

People arrested under the Terrorism Act can be held without charge for up to 14 days.

Nottinghamshire Police said they were keeping an "open mind" about the motives for the attacks, and were working alongside counter-terrorism police, as would normally be the case for an incident like this.

Thursday's vigil will see a minute's silence observed at 18:00 from the steps of the Council House, Nottingham City Council said.

Leader David Mellen said the vigil would provide a chance "to show the world Nottingham takes a stand against violence".

"Our city remains in shock after the tragic death of three people," he said.

"We know the impact of these awful events will be felt not only by the victims' families and friends but by the wider Nottingham community and so it is important that we take time to join together to share our grief and to remember the people we have lost.

"The vigil will be a chance for people to come together to mourn and to show the world how Nottingham takes a stand against violence."

The attacks started with the fatal stabbing of history student Mr Webber and medicine student Ms O'Malley-Kumar in Ilkeston Road shortly before 04:04.

The force believes the suspect then attacked 65-year-old Mr Coates - who was found dead from knife injuries in Magdala Road - and stole his van, which was then used to hit pedestrians in Milton Street, leaving one critically injured.

The university campus vigil on Wednesday saw the fathers of Mr Webber and Ms O'Malley-Kumar give speeches paying tribute to their children.

Sanjoy Kumar thanked everyone for coming and said: "The love that we have out here, I just wish we had it everywhere. So, look after each other is the big thing."

Barnaby Webber's parents returned to the campus on Thursday morning to view tributes left for their son and the other victims.

David and Emma Webber spent time looking through messages attached to hundreds of flowers that had been laid in their memory.

Barnaby's university cricket captain, Chris Howen has also paid tribute, describing his former team-mate as "one of the friendliest blokes" in the team.

He told BBC Radio Four: "[Barnaby] always put himself into everything - whether it was training or a game, the bloke loved it. No-one at the club had a bad word to say about him.

"He made a big impression on both the team in terms of ability, but also in terms of friendliness. The way he was able to throw himself into anything was fantastic.

"The thought of not seeing Barney or Grace again hurts - that's the honest truth really."

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