A brutal machete duel at Sunday lunchtime, another scene from Khan’s ‘safe’ London: Video captures masked teens attacking each other with machetes in broad daylight in family park – as it emerges bystander jumped in to separate them
This is the moment a gang of masked teenagers attacked each other with machetes in a south London park.
The violence unfolded at Burgess Park in Camberwell on Sunday at lunchtime, with the thugs seen trying to stab and slash one another in broad daylight.
In the video snapped by a local, bystanders can be seen trying to break up the brawl.
The scene is yet another display of shocking violence in London, despite Sir Sadiq Khan repeatedly insisting the city as ‘safe’.
Earlier this year, the Mayor of London leapt on new statistics showing homicides at the lowest level on record to boast about his record on policing.
However, a closer look at the data reveals a range of other crimes, including violent assaults, have dramatically increased since he came to power in 2016.
Reports of violence against the person have soared by nearly a third between 2016/17 and 2025/26 to hit 242,777 in total.
Theft from the person has increased by 140 per cent over the same period while sexual and drug offences are up by 55 per cent and 34 per cent consecutively.
Video shared on social media showed three teens carrying machetes fighting in Burgess Park, Camberwell
One of the teens can be seen restraining a boy while a friend tries to stab him in broad daylight
Sunday’s footage shows four armed men fighting as an onlooker shouts ‘stab him’.
One of the men holds one of his rivals on the ground as his associate rushes in and starts trying to knife him.
Bystanders are heard shouting at the thugs to stop and they eventually run away.
The Metropolitan Police said four teenagers have been arrested over the incident in Camberwell, one of whom had taken himself to hospital for treatment for his injuries.
A spokesman said: ‘Police were called at around 12.30pm on Sunday, May 17 to reports of an altercation in Burgess Park, Camberwell.
‘Officers attended and searched the area with the assistance of the police helicopter. Four boys, aged 16 and 17, were arrested on suspicion of offences including affray, causing grievous bodily harm and possession of an offensive weapon.
‘Three boys were arrested near the scene, while a fourth was arrested later on Sunday evening. All four boys remain in police custody.
‘Two of the boys who were arrested were reported to have suffered injuries in the incident, which were not life-threatening or life-changing.
‘One, a 17-year-old boy, self-presented at hospital for treatment to wounds and was discharged later that afternoon, following which he was arrested at a property in Southwark.
‘The second boy, a 16-year-old, was taken to hospital by police and was later discharged.
‘The investigation continues. Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting CAD 3298/17MAY or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.’
ir Sadiq used new figures showing there were 97 homicides in London last year to justify an attack on those who ‘talk down our capital for their own political gain’ – but the Tories accused him of ‘gaslighting’ Londoners about the true extent of crime.
US President Trump, a frequent critic of Sir Sadiq whom he has called a ‘terrible mayor’, has made a series of claims about London, including saying crime is ‘through the roof’ and that the city wants to ‘go to sharia law’.
Sir Sadiq responded by saying: ‘A lot of this misinformation, disinformation and lies comes from the United States of America. It’s really important to counter the propaganda coming from President Trump.’
The mayor launched another staunch defence of London in March – at the same time mobs of youngsters were attacking emergency workers and looting shops in Clapham.
Shopkeepers were forced to barricade their doors after nearly 100 teenagers stormed shops, including a Marks & Spencer store on Clapham High Street.
M&S retail director Thinus Keeve has blamed the London mayor for failing to tackle crime as he demanded answers after his staff and customers came under attack from by mobs of youths.
‘I keep hearing crime is falling, especially in London – something none of us believes, and very few people working in retail would see,’ Mr Keeve said.
‘In fact, we see the absolute opposite in our high streets and in our stores.’
Meanwhile crime on Transport for London (TfL services) has also increased under Sir Sadiq – with more incidents of violence, public disorder and a huge rise in vandalism.
The London Assembly’s Police and Crime Committee said that 48,000 crimes were reported in 2025 – up 46 per cent against a pre-pandemic average of 16,544 amid ‘unacceptable’ levels of violence against women and girls.
Some 12,951 offences on the Tube were recorded between July and December 2025 – an increase of 2.7 per cent from 12,606 in the same period in 2024.
This included a 152 per cent rise in offences of criminal damage, up from 947 to 2,390 incidents amid an ongoing graffiti epidemic on the Underground.
In March, a group of foul-mouthed teenagers sparked a terrifying brawl inside an Elizabeth line train carriage after a middle-aged passenger asked them to stop vaping, before the melee spilled out onto the platform at Stratford in east London.
