San Francisco police release tragic video of tourist Paul Tam being murdered in street by mugger

A British tourist who was stabbed in the head during a mugging in San Francisco has died after being hospitalised for more than a month, said police, who released a video of the deadly attack taking place in the middle of a street amid traffic.

Paul Tam, 48, of Manchester, died Thursday at San Francisco General Hospital, where he was taken after the February 18 attack, San Francisco Police Officer Albie Esparza said.

WARNING: Video contains distressing scenes

Police on Saturday released a video showing the stabbing , as they appealed for witnesses to the murder to come forward.

Tam was walking with his niece when he was attacked by a couple. Tam tried to hold onto his messenger bag but was stabbed in the head by the male suspect, Esparza told the San Francisco Chronicle.

The video showed Tam backing away from his attacker into the street where their confrontation blocked traffic. Tam tries to run around a car to escape his attacker but is tackled by the mugger who then stabs him in the middle of the road.

“As he is going around the vehicle he falls down, it’s at that point that the suspect not only wanted to take the victim’s bag, but he wanted to take his life,” an Francisco Police Officer Carlos Manfredi told local elevision station KGO.