Man charged following reported stabbing

We can confirm a man has been charged after a reported stabbing in St Helens on Tuesday 12 September.

At around 4pm, it was reported that a man aged in his 20s had been stabbed on Cooper Street.

The victim was taken to hospital, where he remains in a serious but stable condition.

Reece Lowndes, 22, of Chiltern Road, St Helens, has now been charged with section 18 wounding with intent and possession of a knife/bladed article in a public place.

He has been remanded in custody to appear at Wirral Adult Remand Court today, Thursday 14 September.

Superintendent Phil Mullally, Lead for Serious Violence and Knife Crime said: “We are determined to protect our communities in Merseyside from all forms of serious violence, including knife crime.

“We know that knife crime has caused concern recently in Merseyside, but please be assured that we take every incident extremely seriously.

“In the last 12 months (September 2022 to August 2023), we have made 229 arrests for possession of a knife or bladed article offences and seized 1,088 knives from the streets of Merseyside.

“This robust, long-term approach has seen knife crime reduce by 13% and serious violent crime reduce by 9% this financial year (April 2023 to August 2023), along with further reductions in the previous year.

“While we have seen a decrease, we are not complacent and know that one incident is one too many because we understand the devastating consequences of carrying a knife.

“Operation Target is our major policing operation to tackle serious violence and knife crime all year round. Alongside open land searches, search warrants and stop searches, we work closely with our partners to prevent serious violence in our communities.

“We also continue to rely on communities for information and would encourage anyone with any information or concerns to report it to us. You can call 101, direct message @MerPolCC on Twitter or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”