Police are stepping up patrols in Banbury after a man was seriously injured in a stabbing in the town.

At about 12.30am on Saturday, a 28-year-old man was stabbed in Pepper Alley, near Chicago Rock Café in Broad Street. He was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital, where he remains seriously ill.

Det Insp Steve Duffy said: “We are stepping up patrols in the area today and we would like to reassure residents that we are doing everything we can to identify the person responsible.

“This is a rare and isolated incident and I have a team of detectives working relentlessly to follow up and investigate every line of enquiry, however I am still asking the Banbury community to come forward with any information about this incident.

“I would like to thank the public for their co-operation and assistance so far, but I believe that there were more people in the area at the time who could have seen what happened and I need to speak to anyone who saw anything, no matter how insignificant you believe it to be.

“It is essential that these people come forward so we can establish the full circumstances surrounding what happened on Saturday morning andI urge anyone who has further information that could assist our enquiries to contact police immediately or contact Crimestoppers anonymously.

Anyone with information about the incident is urged to contact Det Insp Duffy via Thames Valley Police Enquiry Centre on 0845 8 505 505. If you don’t want to speak to police and don’t want to leave your name contact the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.

A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and a 24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm.

Two men, aged 27 and 23, have been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender.

They have all been released on police bail until late October.