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Teenager charged over stabbing of Bailey Gwynne in Aberdeen Teenager charged over stabbing of Bailey Gwynne in Aberdeen
(34 minutes later)
A 16-year-old boy has been charged in connection with the death of Bailey Gwynne, who was stabbed at an Aberdeen secondary school, Police Scotland have said.A 16-year-old boy has been charged in connection with the death of Bailey Gwynne, who was stabbed at an Aberdeen secondary school, Police Scotland have said.
This is a breaking news story, please check back for further updates. The teenager is expected to appear at Aberdeen sheriff court on Friday.
Bailey was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary following the incident at lunchtime on Wednesday but died shortly afterwards from his injuries.
Friends laid floral tributes outside the school on Thursday morning and a candlelit vigil is expected to take place on Thursday evening.
Describing the 16-year-old as “a kind, gentle person who wouldn’t hurt anyone”, pupils came to the school gates in small groups or individually, occasionally accompanied by a parent, to push their bouquets into the wire fencing.
As heavy rain battered the plastic wrappings, one boy talked of his shock as the news of the fatal stabbing spread through the school community. “It’s a very good school, I’ve always felt safe there,” he said.
Like the majority of older pupils, he had left the school at lunchtime to buy snacks at the local shops, but returned to panic and disbelief.
Those pupils not directly involved in the incident were kept in their classrooms and told to leave the school premises as soon as the final bell rang.
As they filed out police officers asked whether they had seen anything of relevance or know of anybody who had some something pertinent to their inquiry.
“It was pretty hard-hitting seeing the police all waiting for us,” said one girl, who was about to lay a bunch of chrysanthemums. “It still doesn’t seen real. It feels wrong to eat. It feels wrong to do anything.”
James McMahon, 17, said that he first realised that something was wrong when he looked out the window during PE class: “I was coming in from lunch when the bell rang for fifth period and I went to PE class. Then I saw out the window that there were police cars and riots vans in the car park. I heard the rumours but I hoped they weren’t true.”
McMahon returned home to find his mother watching the television news. “When it said that the boy had died my head just went. I started shaking. Even my mum burst into tears.”
McMahon had been in the same class as Bailey since senior one. “He was a very nice person,” he said. “He didn’t deserve that.”
He described Bailey as “quite a strong person”, adding: “He hit the gym a lot.” Other friends mentioned that he wanted to join the armed forces.
A vigil is planned for the community at a local parish church at 8pm on Thursday. The minister, the Rev Ewen Gilchrist, said that pupils from the school had visited the church throughout Wednesday evening, and were still reeling.
“We’re not working with a script here,” he said. “We’re not here to counsel them, just to offer them a safe place. We think that being able to come together might serve some purpose.
Bailey had lived with his mother, her partner and his four step-siblings in the quiet village of Maryculter for seven years. His mother worked at home looking after the children while her partner worked in the oil industry. Bailey was her eldest child, and friends described her as distraught, saying that she was only able to tell his younger siblings of the teenager’s death on Thursday morning.
In the affluent cul-de-sac where the family lived, overlooking a football pitch and green church grounds, neighbours described how local children knew one another well, playing together and taking the bus to school. Bailey was a member of the local church youth group until a year ago.
On Wednesday afternoon, the first indication that some adults had of the tragedy was when the school bus made its afternoon trip and dropped the children off at their driveways, rather than further up the hill.