London school knife attack: 13-year-old charged with attempted murder after stabbing two

The 13-year-old boy, who was arrested for launching a stabbing rampage on his classmates in a north-west London school, has now been charged with attempted murder on Thursday (Feb 12). The teen attacked two boys aged 12 and 13 at Kingsbury High School in Brent on Tuesday (Feb 10).

The suspect, who cannot be named due to his age, is facing two counts of attempted murder, possessing a knife on school premises, and using a noxious substance, insect spray, on a third child, the Metropolitan Police said. He will be appearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Youth Court later today.

The incident happened during lunchtime around 12:40 pm. The suspect was arrested around 4:15 pm.

The investigation is being led by the counter-terror police, but the incident has not yet been declared a terrorist incident. Reportedly, the boy shouted “Allahu Akbar” before launching an attack on his classmates.

According to the police, the two victims who were stabbed are in a stable condition in the hospital.

Temporary commander Helen Flanagan, from London’s counter-terror force, described the charges as “extremely serious against a young boy.”

“We continue to support the victims and their families, as well as the wider school community following this shocking incident,” she added.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service said that their prosecutors have “worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring this case to court and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.”

What happened?

On Tuesday afternoon, a 13-year-old student of the Kingsbury High School pulled out a knife and stabbed another 13-year-old in the neck and back. Seconds later, he attacked a 12-year-old boy, as other screaming children watched in horror. Citing witnesses, the Daily Mail reports that the attacker was shouting “Allahu Akbar” ("God is greatest" in Arabic) while carrying out the attack.

The knife-wielding teenager fled after the attack, but an hour later was found hiding nearby. He has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

According to reports, the attacker was not a pupil at Kingsbury High School, where he carried out the shocking knife attack. It remains unclear how he managed to enter the school with a concealed weapon.