Police hold neighbour after senior executive, 45, stabbed just half a mile from London home
- Alison Morrison, 45, stabbed on way to work in Harrow, north London
- She was taken to hospital but died of multiple stab wounds within hours
- Residents said she was locked in bitter dispute over shared driveway
- Victim was a senior Which? manager and dedicated charity volunteer
- Neighbour, satellite TV engineer Trevor Gibbon, 48, has been arrested
A mother was stabbed to death in a violent attack yesterday as she was on her way to work.
Alison Morrison, 45, suffered knife wounds all over her body as she was ambushed less than half a mile from her home.
Her neighbour, satellite TV engineer Trevor Gibbon, 48, was arrested by police, who found a large bloody kitchen knife nearby.
Killed: Alison Morrison, 45, lay fatally wounded in a pool of blood this morning as others rushed to her aid near her home in Harrow, north London. Her neighbour, satellite TV engineer Trevor Gibbon, 48, was arrested
Other residents claimed that the pair had been locked in an increasingly bitter dispute over a shared driveway between their £410,000 end-of-terrace houses.
One witness of the horrific attack, which took place during yesterday morning’s rush hour, said: ‘I was sitting in my room and heard some screaming I thought it was just people being silly. But on the third scream I ran outside and I saw [the attacker] on top of her.
‘She was on the floor and a man was on top of her, attacking her.
‘He had a big knife in his hands, I saw it flashing. It went on for about a minute at least. It’s just so sad. It was awful.
‘I think she was on her way to work.’
The row was apparently ignited when the local council repaved the street, but did not drop the kerb leading on to the driveway. This led the neighbours to argue about who could park where.
Dsipute: Residents said Mrs Morrison had been locked in an increasingly bitter dispute with satellite TV engineer Trevor Gibbon over a shared driveway between their £410,000 end-of-terrace houses (pictured)
Letter: Mr Gibbon and his partner Maria Perrett had written to neighbours about a CCTV system
As it spiralled out of control, the pair, who apparently used to be close, stopped talking to each other.
Other residents in the street in Harrow, north-west London, said matters got worse after Mrs Morrison’s husband Cedric, 46, who underwent a kidney transplant several years ago, put up a bright security light.
A year ago Mr Gibbon’s partner, 52-year-old school teacher Maria Perrett, gave neighbours a handwritten letter saying they had installed a CCTV camera.
Last night, one resident said: ‘It has been going on for a couple of years. One had set up CCTV cameras and the other had a security light that seemed to be bothering them.
‘The road got repaved and there was an argument about the shared driveway and who could park where.
‘One of them would park their car in a way that agitated the other.
Investigation: Police at the scene where the fatal stabbing took place in Harrow, north London
‘I never saw them rowing in the street but everyone was aware of it because they used to speak to each other but now they don’t. Things seemed to have eased and I thought it was resolved.’
Another neighbour said: ‘It was all to do with the shared drive.
‘The road and pavement were replaced and the kerb wasn’t dropped – I think it was something to do with access.
‘Last year or the early part of this year I saw them outside talking about it but they weren’t shouting and arguing, just talking.’
Mrs Morrison’s family were too upset to speak last night as police stood outside their home.
Just yards away, forensic experts were searching through bins in the shared driveway between their homes, which was cordoned off with police tape.
Death: The woman was stabbed in Alexandra Avenue, a main thoroughfare through Harrow, north London
Mrs Morrison, who had a 16-year-old son, Kori, was a senior manager at consumer organisation Which? as well as a dedicated volunteer and adviser to charities. Earlier this year, she joined her local safer neighbourhood board, which aims to cut crime and tackle antisocial behaviour.
Neighbours said they were ‘devastated’ at her death.
Describing her as a ‘nice girl’, one added: ‘This is such a shock to me.
‘Especially in the run-up to Christmas. We only received a Christmas card from her yesterday.’
Mrs Morrison’s sister, Julie Brathwaite, 51, rushed from her home in Waterlooville, Hampshire, to be with her brother-in-law and nephew last night.
One family friend said: ‘Everyone is in bits. We cannot believe what has happened.’
A Met spokesman said a 48-year-old man was being held at a north-west London police station on suspicion of murder.
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