Double killing marks the end of the worst week of crime ever in Milton Keynes

A week of mass fights, knife crimes, woundings and enhanced police powers in MK has ended with the death of two men from gunshot wounds and an innocent small child seriously injured in hospital.

It is the worst week of crime many local people can remember, and already social media is full of people questioning why weapons, fights and affrays are becoming so commonplace here.

"It's like lockdown has eased and all hell has been let loose here," said one woman. "Milton Keynes used to be a peaceful place to life once. The police seem to be doing their best but violent crime had just escalated out of control recently."

Ironically, the past seven days has seen police impose almost continuous Section 60 orders in MK, a normally rare move that gives them power to stop and search any member of the public for weapons of drugs without a reason to believe they're involved in a crime..

Last Sunday night a Section 60 order was brought in the north of MK following a mass fight in Weavers Hill, Fullers Slade, where the groups involved were seen to be carrying knives and even axes.

This order lasted until Wednesday morning, by which time police had arrested four males - one of them as young 14.

But at the very time officers were getting the Section 60 signed off, a serious stabbing was taking place at the other end of MK - in Fenny Stratford.

The victim, a man in his thirties, sustained multiple stab wounds, and a man has since been arrested for attempted murder.

On Tuesday, a "large scale disorder" erupted at a Bletchley pub, Captain Ridley's Shooting Party, at 11.45pm. Glasses were thrown, causing wo female members of staff to be injured, and a 29-year-old man suffered a broken jaw that required surgery.

Five men aged between 22 and 42 have been arrested so far in connection with the incident.

The following evening, at 5.20pm, yet another affray broke out - this time with grown men fighting in a children's play park in Bletchley's Buckfast Avenue.

A group of between 20 and 30 males were involved in the disorder and they were armed with bricks and bladed articles, said police, who made six arrests almost immediately after the incident.

Two hours later, another Section 60 order was in place. This time, in no nonsense-style, it covered the entire borough of Milton Keynes.

On Thursday this order was extended for another 24 hours but only in Bletchley, in the areas surrounded by the H8, Whaddon Road, Stoke Road, the A4146 and the A5.

This order expired on Friday evening. Less than 15 hours later police were called to a house in Two Mile Ash after neighbours heard a loud and ongoing disturbance.

Armed officers arrived to find one man dead and a small boy seriously injured. A second man died minutes later from a gunshot wound fired by police.

No arrests have been made but police made it clear they were not searching for anyone else in connection with the incident. Meanwhile, the little boy is still seriously ill.

"It was a terrible and tragic end to a horrible week of crime," said one social media user. "It just makes you wonder what else needs to be done to control this wave of violence, knife and weapon crime in Milton Keynes.

Another said: "Police seem to be doing their very best. In most cases, people have been arrested very shortly after each incident. And a record number of Section 60s have been imposed. But as fast as one lot are arrested and charged, trouble breaks out somewhere else in MK... I really don't know what the answer is."

Meanwhile MK Alderman and Stony Stratford town councillor Paul Bartlett has called for residents to support police after the "astonishing" week of crime.

He said: "Milton Keynes police need the support of residents more than ever as they deal with an astonishing week of crime and violence here."

He added: "The vast majority of residents of Milton Keynes are decent and caring and will be as concerned as much as anyone that violence in all manner of forms has dominated the headlines.

"The police face an increasing amount of demands each day and members of the public can play a huge part in making their task easier. It has become a bit of a cliché to hear calls for residents to come forward yet now, more than perhaps ever before, we all need to take stock and give the police and others the maximum amount of support possible, not jump to conclusions and not to take the police for granted."

The Alderman added: "We can not live in a walk on by society and expect life to be a bundle of fun so if anyone has any information that will bring people to justice, now is the time to come forward.

"The police have a difficult job at the best of times and we should be pleased that that we a local force dedicated to working with and protecting all that they serve.

"We need to hold our nerve, pull together and not let the events of recent days cast a shadow over our great town which has much to be proud of."