Residents and businesses living yards from where a man was stabbed on Friday night have voiced their anger and helplessness.

Police officers were called to the junction of Beal Road and Cranbrook Road in Ilford at 11.50pm, where they discovered a man with non-life threatening stab wounds.

He was taken immediately to hospital.

Mark Sinclair, office manager of Payne and Co estate agents, based on the corner of the junction, told the Recorder the business had been forced to close all day on Saturday.

He said: “When we got in in the morning we saw the crime scene had been all set up and we couldn’t get in.

“We had viewings to go to but we couldn’t get into the building to get the keys, so we ended up working from memory when our appointments were and having to explain we had no keys.”

Mr Sinclair also told the Recorder officers informed informed him the crime scene would be up for around five hours, although in reality the cordon remained in place for the majority of Saturday daytime.

Another man, also in his 20s, was taken to hospital by police on Friday but subsequently discharged and arrested in connection with the incident.

A Mansfield Road resident who lives less than 100 yards from where the victim was found told the Recorder it was not the first time something like this had happened near his home.

“It’s happened twice this year, but you’re going to get that in this sort of area” he said.

“What I think the problem is is that people know Cranbrook Road has got a lot of cameras up and down it, so when it gets late and they start knocking each other about they move it onto the side roads.

“The first I knew about it was when I woke up and the road was closed, then a couple of detectives came round and asked if I’d seen anything – I’d been fast asleep.”

A number of Mansfield and Beal Road residents were left frustrated by the temporary closure of parts of both roads as the police investigated – a problem which was exacerbated when emergency services closed Cranbrook Road on Saturday afternoon to deal with a fire.

“It was chaos round here on Saturday,” said Sharon Ali, of Mansfield Road.

“It took my husband an hour to get to Barkingside to drop our son to football training. It probably would’ve been faster to walk!

“A fire and a police investigation, all on one Saturday. That’s Ilford for you.”