A Crystal Palace Poundstretcher employee suffered “significant” injuries when he was attacked by a man wielding a hatchet.

Members of the public stepped in to stop the “brutal, unprovoked” assault inside the chain’s Westow Hill store at around 5pm on Tuesday, July 27.

Police officers attended alongside paramedics, who treated the victim for injuries to his face and hands, before taking him to hospital.

The Met are yet to make any arrests following the incident, as enquiries continue.

A spokesperson for Poundstretcher said: “Poundstretcher is very concerned about an attack on one of our store colleagues, the injuries sustained by our colleague are significant but not life threatening.

“We are providing support to our colleague and are thankful to the general public for assisting in stopping the brutal, unprovoked attack with a hatchet which we have no doubt stopped a fatal injury.

“We will continue ongoing support for our colleague and to his family.

“Knife crime has very serious consequences and we must all work together to stop it.

“Poundstretcher has taken the decision years ago to stop selling knives due to the risk of them falling into the wrong hands.

“Police attended in numbers and are carrying out ongoing enquiries and Poundstretcher will provide full assistance including providing CCTV for the investigation.

“Knife crime continues to be a serious issue in London and as a company we have implemented policies and procedures to help safeguard our employees.”

Anyone with information which could assist the investigation is asked to call 101 quoting ref CAD 5589/27Jul or alternatively contact Crimestoppers completely anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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