A nine-year-old girl, who was among those injured in a multiple stabbing attack that occurred on Monday in Southport (northwest England), died on Tuesday, according to police in the British county of Merseyside. With her, there are now three fatalities in this attack – along with two other girls aged six and seven – which occurred at a children’s dance event and whose motive is still being investigated. Eight more minors are hospitalized, five of them in critical condition; as are two adults, one of whom is the instructor of the dance and yoga class inspired by the music of American singer Taylor Swift, which had sold out the 25 available places.
The only person arrested, who remains in custody, is 17 years old, so once he is charged it is not expected that his identity will be revealed, as he is a minor. The police have clarified that the name that has been circulating on the internet is not correct. Investigators have, however, confirmed some details: that he comes from a family that had escaped the genocide in Rwanda, that he was born in Cardiff (capital of Wales) and that since 2013 he had lived in Banks, a small town in the neighbouring county of Lancashire, 15 minutes from where the incident took place.
Following his arrest, just 70 minutes after the attack, the police confirmed that they were not looking for any other suspects and that they ruled out the terrorist nature of the attack. The investigation is now focused on determining the motivation. The officers are immersed in the forensic analysis phase, both of the young man’s mental health, as well as his electronic devices and related property, in order to try to determine what led a 17-year-old minor to undertake an attack described by the police as “atrocious” and described by eyewitnesses as “like something out of a horror film.”
The incident occurred shortly before 11.50am (one hour ahead in Spanish mainland time), with just 10 minutes left in a two-hour class for children aged between six and 12. The suspect, who was wearing a green hooded sweatshirt and his face covered with a mask, arrived by taxi, according to witnesses. He then entered the so-called The Hart Space, a social centre for pregnant women, babies and children that regularly organises events, especially during these school holiday weeks.
The dance studio is accessed through a small alley and, according to neighbours, cannot be seen simply by walking past the building. The door to the facility was open, specifically to allow children to use the bathroom. The alleged perpetrator of the attack entered and, according to police, began stabbing each child he encountered, despite the intervention of several adults to stop him, including the instructor who was leading the event, who was hospitalised in critical condition. People from nearby businesses also tried to stop him and one man was stabbed in the leg, his wife told British media. Some residents managed to get several children out and into their homes for protection.
What followed were scenes described by those in the area as “horrifying”, with children emerging from the building with clearly serious injuries and parents screaming in terror. Dozens of emergency vehicles, from ambulances to police and fire trucks, arrived at the scene, where some of the children were treated by paramedics. Some of the staff responsible for treating the victims were seen crying shortly afterwards in the area of the incident, from which security officers took the parents of the children in attendance. Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, one of five to which the injured were taken, declared the situation a “serious incident” and asked residents to only go to the emergency unit in cases of extreme emergency.
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The area of Hart Street where the incident took place, still cordoned off, is struggling to come to terms with what has happened. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper visited the scene – filled with flowers, poems and toys such as teddy bears – on Tuesday morning, alongside the MP representing the constituency in Westminster, Patrick Hurley. It is a residential area where residents highlight the “community spirit” and local residents and businesses have been giving back to those affected. Some shops have put up closed signs and, in anticipation of the vigil called for this afternoon, pubs will also close their doors.
The British political and institutional arch has reacted to an episode that, according to the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has left the whole of the United Kingdom “deeply shocked”. King Charles III also expressed his “deepest condolences” in a statement in which he spoke of his “shock“upon hearing of the absolutely horrific incident.” The Prince and Princess of Wales said on their social media that, “as parents,” they could not “even begin to imagine” what those affected are going through.
Taylor Swift herself, whose music was the central theme of the class in which the stabbing occurred, has also spoken out on Instagram, where she published a statement in which she said she was “completely in agreement” with the stabbing. shock” for “the loss of life and innocence, and the horrific trauma inflicted on everyone who was there.” “They were just children in a dance class. I will never be able to express my sympathy for these families,” she wrote. Fans of the artist have promoted a fundraising campaign to help the families of the victims and raise money for the hospitals treating the injured; in less than 24 hours they had surpassed 20,000 pounds (about 23,000 euros).
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