A FOURTH person has been arrested in connection with an incident in Southend where two men were left with serious injuries.

One man was found injured near to the Odeon cinema near London Road and another was discovered near to College Way at around 11.30pm on Thursday.

Both men remain in hospital – one has life-changing injuries while the other remains in a critical condition.

Officers have been carrying out extensive enquiries since the incident took place and today made a fourth arrest in connection with the incident.

A 28 year-old man from Isleworth has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and possession with intent to supply drugs. He is currently in custody.

Three people were arrested shortly after the incident.

A 28 year-old man arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, a 24 year-old woman arrested on suspicion of possession of a knife in a public place, grievous bodily harm with intent, and possession of a firearm, and a 22 year-old man arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of a Class B drug have all been released on bail until 15 September.

The 24 year-old woman has been told she faces no further action in relation to an offence of actual bodily harm and the 22 year-old man has been told he faces no further action in relation to an offence of robbery.

A spokesman for Essex Police said: "We continue to believe this was a targeted attack and there’s no risk to the wider public.

"Our enquiries are ongoing and we need anyone who saw what happened, has any CCTV or dash cam footage or any other information to contact us.

"You can call 101 quoting incident 1542 of 20 August or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111."