London's latest deadly menace

A combined knife and gun which shoots five bullets and has a toughened 6in blade is the latest weapon to threaten Britain's streets.

A day after the Metropolitan Police revealed new figures showing that street crime in London is still soaring, with nearly 170 muggings a day, police have spoken of their concern about the new GRAD.22, which has a firing mechanism of a pistol hidden in its folding handle.

They fear it is a deadly weapon which could be smuggled into Britain from America, where it costs £650.

It is already on sale on the continent and could be brought over by ferry passengers.

Last week police revealed concerns about stun guns, which send an electric shock through the body when pressed against it, and are becoming popular with violent criminals.

The new menace is revealed as Home Secretary David Blunkett publicly announced our streets are not safe to walk on and as gun crime reaches an all-time high.

Two knife-guns have already been found on passengers at Gatwick and Stansted airports.

Terry Gander, editor of Janes Infantry Weapons magazine, said: "The thought of a gangster being in possession of one of these things is very disturbing."

American firearms sellers boast: "It is a state-of-the-art combination weapon.

It has the utility of a fighting knife with the covert back-up of a five-shot revolver. It comes in a variety of styles of blades and handles.

"Made of the highest grade stainless steel, it is originally designed for Russian troops and fires .22 bullets as fast as you can squeeze the trigger."