Increased Calls for Otley Run Safety as Counter Terror Police Investigate Crossbow Incident

Individuals living in the Headingley area have called for the Otley Run to receive stricter crowd control and policing following an incident in which two women were seriously injured by a violent crossbow attack.

On 26 April, West Yorkshire Police were summoned to the Headingley, Leeds area after it was reported a man with a crossbow had injured 3 people.

West Yorkshire Police later detained suspect Owen Lawrence, 38, who later died in police custody on the 29 April from a self-inflicted injury sustained during the attack.

Roads and bus routes were closed from the Arndale Centre in Headingley to Woodies Pub. Locals took cover in restaurants while the incident took place. News of the incident was slow to spread, with some locals only gaining information of the incident several hours later after reporting from West Yorkshire police. One individual who spoke to The Gryphon remarked they were only ware of the incident after ‘the total absence of Otley runners’.

An outpouring of support has occurred across Leeds in support of the victims.

Local councillor Tim Goodall stated, ‘thinking of everyone affected by the awful events in Headingly earlier today, hopefully residents are now reassured that the suspect has been detained.’

The police left several officers remaining in place to ensure “public safety remains our priority”. Counter terror policing have since taken over the investigation.

However, the incident has also opened up wider concerns about the safety of the Otley Run. Despite attracting hundreds of visitors and students each weekend, the run is not officially recognised as an ‘event’ meaning it does not receive the same levels of policing as other organised events.

The accessibility of crossbow weapons has also been questioned, as posed by local MP Alex Sobel in parliament.

The incident has also drawn attention to a rise in misogynistic views online, with Lawrence’s social media expressing the attack acted to target students  as an act of “terrorism, revenge and misogynic rage”.

Local residents continue to raise concerns about the safety and policing of the Otley Run following the incident.