Westminster stabbing: woman found dead in home across from Hyde Park as police launch murder probe

A woman has been found dead in her home in Westminster after suffering a number of stab wounds, Met Police has confirmed.

The force has launched a murder investigation after the woman was found at her home on Stanhope Place, near Hyde Park, at around 8.30am on Monday morning (April 8). Officers attended the address after friends of the woman contacted police concerned for her safety.

Police are working to trace her next of kin to inform them of her passing and a post-mortem is due to take place in due course. No arrests have been made as of yet but police are urging anyone with any information to come forward.

Detective Chief Inspector Adam Clifton from the Met's Specialist Crime Command leads the investigation and said: "I understand this news will be concerning, and that local women especially may be worried. Our enquiries are in the very early stages and we are keeping an open mind as to the motive, however I can assure people that my team are working 24/7 to establish what happened to the woman, and to identify and arrest whoever may be responsible for this attack.

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"My officers now need support and information from the public. I want to ask local people to check doorbell cameras, and for drivers in the area to think about whether they've seen anything unusual that might have been captured on dash cam. Did you notice any unusual activity at the address? If you did then it is imperative that we hear from you."

Chief Superintendent Louise Puddefoot, lead for policing in Westminster, added: "Our thoughts are with the woman and her family. My officers will do everything we can to support the investigation and they will be stationed in the area to speak to anyone who has any information or concerns they want to share with us."

You can contact police with information by calling 101 or messaging @MetCC on X (formerly Twitter) and quoting ref CAD 6784/7 Apr. To remain 100% anonymous contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.