Friends have named the 21-year-old student as Aliyah, who reportedly was sat on a bench outside King’s College London when she was hit yesterday (March 18) at 11.41am.
Police have today (March 19) said that a 27-year-old woman who was also hit remains in a serious condition in hospital, but her conditions are not believed to be life-threatening.
A 23-year-old man who was taken to hospital has since been discharged.
Medics also treated a fourth person at the scene, but they were discharged.
Officers arrested the driver of the van, a 26-year-old man, at the scene on suspicion of causing death by careless driving.
He was further arrested whilst in custody on suspicion of drug driving offences.
According to the Metropolitan Police, he has since ben bailed with conditions while enquiries continue.
Detective Chief Superintendent Christina Jessah, in charge of policing for the area said: “This was a tragic incident which has deeply affected the community.
“I commend the actions of the emergency services and members of the public, who provided aid to those involved who tried to save this young woman’s life and help the others who were injured.
“This area of London is extremely busy and those who have been in the area over the last 24 hours would have noticed an increased police presence as our enquiries continue.
“Cordons have since been lifted, however we continue to work with those in the area, including King’s College London.
“We are aware of inaccurate speculation online about this incident being terrorism related. We ask the public to refrain from this speculation to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation and avoid causing further suffering to the family of the young woman.
“Our thoughts remain with the family of the young woman who has died.”
Chief Superintendent Thomas Naughton of the Met’s Roads and Transport Policing Command added that investigations remain in the “early stages” as officers gather CCTV and obtain witness statements at the scene.
Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or message @MetCC on X, referencing CAD 2771/18MARCH.
