Knife thug aged TEN slashed woman after she refused to give him a cigarette

The youngster and a friend confronted the woman in her 50s outside a train station yesterday afternoon.

They tried to grab the lit cigarette from her mouth and when she resisted, the boy slashed her across the arm with a blade.

Passers-by rushed to the woman's side as she bled heavily from the wound, which police believe was inflicted with a craft knife or razor.

Knife attack: A boy aged 10 slashed a woman with a blade outside Selhurst Station in south-east London, above

Police were called to the scene, near Selhurst train station in south-east London, but the two boys had fled.

The woman, who has not been named but is believed to be in her fifties, was taken to hospital for treatment.

A police source told reporters: 'The two kids apparently approached the woman and asked her for a cigarette.

'But when she said no one of them slashed her across the arm.

'It is understood they used either a Stanley knife or a sharp razor blade.

'The cut didn't go right to the bone, but it was still a pretty deep cut and the woman was left in deep shock.'

A police spokesman added: 'The victim received a cut to her arm after two boys attempted to steal a cigarette out of her mouth.

'It is understood a knife was used in the assault. The suspects are described as black and aged between 10 and 11 years old.'

Danny Foley, landlord of the nearby Selhurst Arms, said of the attack: 'I'm not surprised. We get a lot of crime down here.

'But when you consider the age of the suspects, it really is quite appalling and disgusting.

“The parents have a lot to answer for too - what on earth are two 10-year-olds doing wandering around by themselves with a knife?'

Jason Grant, district manager for Thornton Heath and Selhurst added: 'It is very concerning to think of kids as young as this brazenly approaching a woman in broad daylight and using a knife on her over a cigarette.

'It seems kids who commit crimes are getting younger and younger these days.

'The area surrounding the station is very isolated, which is a problem.'