Teenage brawl stabbing: 18-year-old woman is charged

Murdered: Sian Simpson, 17, was stabbed to death as she intervened in a clash between two groups of girls

An 18-year-old woman will appear before magistrates today charged with the murder of teenager Sian Simpson.

Sian Simpson, aged 18, died from a stab wound to the heart after a disturbance in Mann Close, Croydon, south London, just before 8pm on Tuesday.

Unemployed Chelsea Bennett of Gilroy Court Hotel, London Road, Croydon will appear today at Croydon Magistrates' Court.

A second 18-year-old woman arrested in connection with the murder has been released on bail to return to a south London police station next month.

Sian, an A level student who hoped to be an accountant, collapsed in the street and died of a single stab wound to the heart.

Her death follows a string of knife and gun murders of teenage boys in London, many of which are believed to have been the result of gang rivalries.

Police revealed that there had been problems with girl gangs in the area, but detectives do not believe the killing was gang-related.

The argument broke out shortly before 8pm on Tuesday in a residential road in Croydon.

The area is often used for filming the police drama, The Bill, and some residents thought they were watching an episode being acted out.

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Witnesses said Sian was hurt while intervening in a dispute

Friends leave flowers at the scene where 17-year-old Sian Simpson was stabbed to death

She was taken to Mayday Hospital in Croydon but was pronounced dead at 8.43pm. Sian, whose parents are separated, was the oldest of five children and lived with her grandmother, Olive Watson.

Sian's mother Julie Fairclough was being comforted by relatives.

Her father, 41-year-old Joseph Simpson, runs a courier business. He visited the scene of her death.

He said: "I've never cried so much in my life. It's so shocking.

He added: "Sian was a good kid, she was bubbly, bright and she was beautiful."

The dead girl's aunt Cheryl Simpson, 43, said Sian had lined up an interview to work for an accountancy firm.

"She wanted to be an accountant. She wasn't part of any gang.

Sian Simpson's devastated aunt, Cheryl Simpson 43, visits the murder scene in Croydon.

"Sian was very much a family person, happy and outgoing."

Detective Chief Inspector Nick Scola said: "A large number of witnesses have come forward and they are currently being interviewed.

"There is no information to suggest that this tragic incident was gang-related as those involved all knew each other."

Police have also played down suggestions that there was any race element to the brawl.

Earlier this year six teenagers died in knife attacks in Britain in one month.

MPs rushed through new legislation to tackle escalating gun and knife crime, but critics have warned that they will have little effect.

Alan Gordon, vice-chairman of the Police Federation, said that some youths had a "scant regard" for human life.

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