Following a mass stabbing at a children’s party in Southport, England, with a Taylor Swift theme, a third kid passed away. The knifeman was reportedly from a family of Rwandan immigrants.
The mass stabbing of children who were participating in a summer holiday dancing workshop at a community center in Southport, near Liverpool, in northeastern England, alludes to Taylor Swift’s song, to which the musician responded with horror.
Swift said on social media that she was having trouble figuring out how to show the victims’ families her condolences. She penned:
“I’m still reeling from yesterday’s atrocity in Southport, and I’m in total shock.” The terrible anguish imposed on first responders, families, and all those present, along with the loss of life and innocence, has left me in complete shock. These were young children attending a dancing lesson. I have no idea how I will ever be able to express my condolences to these families.”
Just before noon on Monday, Southport, a coastal town in Merseyside, received a call from the police regarding a reported knife assault at a community center. A fierce attack had left “many victims, many of whom were youngsters, with critical injuries,” as the local police chief stated during a news conference on Monday night. The officers were appalled to learn this at the scene.
Over the course of Monday, the number of people killed in the incident increased from one to two, and sadly, Merseyside Police revealed on Tuesday morning that a third youngster had passed away from their injuries. The three girls that died were six, seven, and nine years old.
Seven other children sustained injuries, with five of them reportedly in critical condition and fighting for their lives. In addition, two adults sustained injuries, and authorities gave them credit for trying to fend off the assailant. According to The Daily Telegraph, the adults involved are 63-year-old businessman Jonathan Hayes and 35-year-old dance instructor Leanne Lucas, who suffered serious injuries. According to Mr. Hayes’ spouse, he rushed into the dancing studio to try to avert the knifeman’s blows on the kids.
“We work in the same building as the dance studio. He heard screaming and ran outside. He saw the assailant and realized he had wounded a child. He attempted to remove the knife and sustained a stab wound to his leg, as reported by the woman.
Shortly after the incident, police in the neighboring town of Banks Village detained a guy, aged 17. According to The Times, the suspect is a minor, and British law prohibits naming him. Nevertheless, he is the son of Rwandan parents who fled the genocide and sought asylum in the United Kingdom. According to reports, the suspect was born in Wales and came to the Merseyside region as a young child.
According to the police, although counterterrorism officers are supporting the investigation and the attack’s motive is still unknown, they are not yet classifying it as having anything to do with terrorism.
