The man who was stabbed to death on London’s Oxford Street this week was facing charges of raping a 16-year-old girl and chemically burning her afterwards to hide the crime, it was revealed today.
The Crown Prosecution Service said Steven Bigby (22) from Hackney had also been due to stand trial in June over the stabbing of a man in north London in October 2006.
Two teenagers have been arrested in connection with Mr Bigby's murder. The suspects, aged 18 and 19, are being questioned at an east London police station.
Mr Bigby was murdered outside a McDonald's restaurant near Oxford Circus during the evening rush hour on Monday. A post mortem found he died from a single stab wound to the heart.
The Crown Prosecution Service released details of criminal charges against Mr Bigby. He had been charged with nine others for the rape of a woman in London in January, a CPS spokeswoman said.
He faced a further charge of causing grievous bodily harm by pouring caustic soda on the victim. Media reports said the chemical was used in an attempt to destroy evidence and caused the 16-year-old severe burns.
London mayor Boris Johnson said he would discuss the "terrible scourge" of knife crime in a meeting with Home Secretary Jacqui Smith this week.
"I will call for the full weight of the government to be directed to making sure we see no repeat of the terrible events of the last 48 hours," he said in a statement. "We must work as hard as we can together to reverse this dreadful trend."
Police said Mr Bigby was stabbed after an argument broke out between two groups of men on Oxford Street, one of the British capital's busiest shopping areas. A drink was thrown by one of the groups and the "spontaneous" row quickly escalated.
A passing doctor gave Mr Bigby first aid on the pavement after he was stabbed. He was taken to a London hospital where he was pronounced dead.