Man Arrested by Detectives Investigating Brutal Murder of Pensioner in London

An undated photo of Thomas O'Halloran, 87, who was murdered on his mobility scooter in Greenford, west London, on Aug. 16, 2022. (Metropolitan Police)

Detectives investigating the murder of a pensioner who was stabbed to death as he rode his mobility scooter within yards of one of London’s busiest roads have arrested a 44-year-old man.

Thomas O’Halloran, who was 87, was attacked close to the A40 in Greenford, west London, on Tuesday, but managed to travel 75 yards before collapsing.

O'Halloran, known locally as Mr. Tom, was an eccentric character who would sometimes play an accordion for commuters at Greenford station as he raised money for those affected by the conflict in Ukraine.

Steve Pound, the former Labour MP for the area, told GB News: “Tom was a real local character. He would be outside Greenford station playing the accordion, occasionally the harmonica. He was a sweet, lovely man … He was well-liked and well-loved, but, above all, he was one of those characters who would cement an area.”

The motive for his murder is unknown but Detective Chief Inspector Jim Eastwood, who is leading the investigation, thanked the public for their help following O'Halloran’s “horrific” murder.

A 44-year-old man was arrested about five miles away, in Southall, on Wednesday night and is being interviewed by detectives.

Eastwood said in a statement to the press: “As a result of the release of a CCTV image yesterday, an arrest has been made and this investigation is progressing at pace. Mr O’Halloran’s family have been updated with this development and continue to be supported by specially trained officers.”

A police tent at the scene where an elderly man who had been riding a mobility scooter was stabbed to death, in Greenford, west London, on Aug. 17, 2022. (PA)

O'Halloran was originally from County Clare in the Republic of Ireland and often visited relatives there.

Local Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway said his death had been met with “deep shock and sadness” in his home town of Ennistymon.

Tuesday’s incident was the 58th homicide in London and came only 24 hours after 58-year-old Aziza Bennis was stabbed to death in Acton. Her daughter, Hanna Bennis, 21, has been charged with her murder.

Greenford is an area with a low crime rate but it has seen violent crimes in the past.

In March 2009 Ian Newton, a reggae DJ better known as Scoobie Santino, was stabbed to death in the underpass beneath the Greenford roundabout—500 yards from the scene of Tuesday’s attack—in a crime which remains unsolved.

Then, in November 2009, Geeta Aulakh was murdered with a machete as she walked to her childminder’s home in Greenford. Her estranged husband, Harpreet, was later jailed for life after it emerged he had hired a teenage hitman from India to carry out the murder during an acrimonious divorce.

PA Media contributed to this report.