Fifth arrest made in Peterborough following delivery driver who was killed by machete-wielding gang

A person in Peterborough has become the fifth to be arrested following the death of a delivery driver at the hands of a machete-wielding gang.

The attack took place in Coton Hill, Shrewsbury on Monday afternoon (August 21).

Aurman Singh worked for DPD but died following an ambush as he made deliveries in Berwick Avenue.

Four men, aged 24, 22, 26 and 24, were arrested on suspicion of murder on Tuesday (August 22) and remain in police custody.

On Wednesday, (August 23) a fifth person was arrested in Peterborough on suspicion of assisting an offender.

Neighbours told how the gang may have lay in wait for two hours before ambushing Mr Singh with "blades and blunt objects."

Witnesses also reportedly saw the men armed with machetes, baseball bats and a shovel.

One resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "There were no firearms involved but heard blades and blunt objects were used as weapons during the attack.

"I think it was an opportunistic attack and it didn't involve people from around the estate. The police acted very quickly though to arrest four men."

Another local added: "I go over to see my elderly neighbour each day just to give him a hand and a bit of company.

"As I was leaving yesterday morning I spotted an Audi parked up outside my house, which I thought was a bit strange.

"I couldn't see through the window to see if there were any people inside so I thought nothing of it and carried on to my neighbours.

"I did his gardening and a bit of weeding on his driveway and when I went home at 1pm, it was still there.

"The next thing I know there's police all down the street. I must have just missed what happened.

"It had been there for at least two hours, which begs the question how did they know the delivery driver would be heading there?

A third resident said: "I got back home ten minutes after it happened and saw the man's body covered by a sheet in the street.

"My first concern was for my neighbours, young families were locking themselves in their homes until we knew what had happened.

"Police are being very tight-lipped with us, so something major has happened.

"It's awful that something this tragic can happen on our wonderful little estate."

Detective Chief Inspector Mark Bellamy, of West Mercia Police, said: “Our thoughts are very much with the family and friends of Aurman at this difficult time.

“Our investigation is underway with officers carrying out a number of enquiries to establish the circumstances that led to Aurman’s murder.

“We know Aurman was a delivery person however at this stage we do not believe this was the motive for his death and we are not investigating this as a robbery.

“We believe those involved are known to each other and are not local to Shrewsbury or the wider West Mercia Police area.

“We have so far arrested five people in connection with the murder and are progressing all other lines of enquiry to locate and arrest outstanding suspects.”

In a tribute, Aurman’s devastated family said: ‘There are no words that could ever explain the impact this tragedy has had on me and my family.

"A mother will grow old without her son. A sister will grow up without her brother. We don’t want what has happened to us to happen to another family.

"We would like to thank the police for conducting their investigation diligently and supporting us through this tough time."

Anyone with information, has been urged to contact West Murcia Police, quoting log 192_I_21082023.