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After London Knife Attack, Man Is Held on Suspicion of Murder Man Held After London Knife Attack That Killed an American
(about 1 hour later)
LONDON — A 19-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder after a knife attack in Central London that left a woman dead and five people wounded, the Metropolitan Police said on Thursday. LONDON — A 19-year-old Norwegian man was arrested on suspicion of murder after a knife attack in Central London that left an American woman dead and five people wounded, the Metropolitan Police said on Thursday.
The attack on Wednesday night, on the eastern corner of Russell Square in Bloomsbury — a neighborhood known for its handsome garden squares that is home to the British Museum and several universities — immediately raised fears about terrorism, but the police appeared to be focusing on other possibilities. The attack on Wednesday night, on the eastern corner of Russell Square in Bloomsbury — a neighborhood known for its handsome garden squares that is home to the British Museum and several universities — immediately raised fears about terrorism. But after working through the night, the police said there was no evidence that the attack was politically motivated.
“Our investigation is moving very quickly and our detectives have been working hard throughout the night,” Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Metropolitan Police commissioner, said in a statement. “As we have already made clear, mental health remains a substantial focus for our investigation.” “Whilst the investigation is not yet complete, all of the work that we have done so far increasingly points to this tragic incident as having been triggered by mental health issues,” Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, the top counterterrorism official at the Metropolitan Police, said in a statement. “At this time we believe this was a spontaneous attack and the victims were selected at random.”
The police had cited terrorism as a possible motivation in a statement released early in the morning, saying it was “one line of inquiry being explored,” but subsequent statements made no reference to it. The police had said in a statement early Thursday morning that terrorism was “one line of inquiry being explored,” but later backed away from that theory.
The first call about the attack came just after 10:30 p.m., the police said, and over the next several hours calls flooded in, some reporting that the man was on nearby streets, including Montague Street and Great Russell Street. “So far we have found no evidence of radicalization or anything that would suggest the man in our custody was motivated by terrorism,” Mr. Rowley told reporters outside New Scotland Yard, the police headquarters.
The entrance to the British Museum is on Great Russell Street, about 1,000 feet from the site of the attack. Although many students live and study in Bloomsbury, and it is a popular place for tourists to stay, the area immediately around the square is not particularly known for its night life. Mr. Rowley said the attacker was a Norwegian citizen of Somali ancestry, but he said that his background did not appear to be “relevant to the motivation for his actions.”
Armed officers arrived about five minutes after receiving the first call, and a stun gun was used to disable the suspect. He was treated at a hospital and then taken into custody at a police station in South London. The woman who was killed was an American citizen, and the five wounded people, two women and three men, included citizens of Australia, Britain, Israel and the United States, Mr. Rowley said. All were hospitalized, but three have been treated and released.
A woman in her 60s died at the scene, the police said. Five others, two women and three men, were wounded. Details about their conditions and injuries were not immediately available, although the police said on Twitter on Thursday morning that three people had been discharged from the hospital. In Norway, the National Criminal Investigation Service said in a statement that it was cooperating with the British authorities. The man emigrated to Britain from Norway in 2002, the agency said.
Mayor Sadiq Khan said in a statement on Thursday that the “safety of all Londoners” was his top priority. He also expressed his sympathy for the victims and asked residents to keep an eye out as the investigation continued. The first call about the attack came at 10:33 p.m., the London police said, and over the next several hours calls flooded in, some reporting that the man was on nearby streets, including Montague Street and Great Russell Street.
“I urge all Londoners to remain calm and vigilant,” Mr. Khan said. “Please report anything suspicious to the police. We all have a vital role to play as eyes and ears for our police and security services and in helping to ensure London is protected.” Although many students live and study in Bloomsbury, and it is a popular place for tourists to stay, the area immediately around the square is known more for its concentration of hotels than for its night life.
Armed officers arrived six minutes after receiving the first call, and used a stun gun to disable the suspect. He was treated at a hospital and then taken into custody at a police station in South London. On Thursday morning, the police “searched an address in North London and will search another in South London,” Mr. Rowley said.
Helen Edwards, 33, who lives in the area, was passing through Russell Square when she came across armed police officers, a rare sight in London.
“When I arrived, the police cordon was up, there were a lot of armed police, police cars, ambulance,” she said in a phone interview, estimating that she had arrived about an hour after the attack. She began taking pictures and stayed in the area off and on, into the morning.
“It was only yesterday that the police were announcing having more armed police on the streets of London,” Ms. Edwards said. “It was almost like because that was in my mind, it wasn’t quite as much of a surprise as it perhaps would have been otherwise.”
“There wasn’t a huge sense of panic; I couldn’t tell whether it was some kind of incident or whether it was just an alert,” she said. “It was obvious that if something had happened it was under control.”
Mayor Sadiq Khan said in a statement on Thursday that the “safety of all Londoners” was his top priority and expressed his sympathy for the victims.
The attack occurred just hours after officials announced the start of Operation Hercules, an initiative that included the addition of 600 armed officers in the city to better protect it against an attack.The attack occurred just hours after officials announced the start of Operation Hercules, an initiative that included the addition of 600 armed officers in the city to better protect it against an attack.
“The threat level here in London has not changed, but it does remain at severe, and especially in light of recent deadly attacks in Europe, it is important we are prepared should the unthinkable happen,” Mr. Khan said in a statement on Wednesday. Handguns were effectively banned in Britain after a school massacre in 1996, and most police officers do not carry firearms. Mr. Rowley said of the police who responded: “They detained an armed and dangerous man, and resolved it using the minimum necessary force: no shots were fired. We should be proud of them and the British tradition of using the minimum necessary force.”
“We will see more armed officers on our streets, but there is no reason to be alarmed,” he added.
Handguns were effectively banned in Britain after a school massacre in 1996, and most police officers do not carry firearms.
Mr. Khan, who was elected in May, vowed during his campaign for mayor to “challenge gang culture and knife crime head on,” and recently said, after a fatal stabbing in North London, that he was “extremely worried” about knife crime.Mr. Khan, who was elected in May, vowed during his campaign for mayor to “challenge gang culture and knife crime head on,” and recently said, after a fatal stabbing in North London, that he was “extremely worried” about knife crime.
Residents in the area said the police responded quickly. “Thank you so much @metpoliceuk for being so fast, caring and efficient tonight in #russellsquare,” Susanna Cappellaro wrote in a post on Twitter. “I am a resident and I really thank you.”
The police have been on heightened alert after a series of terrorist attacks in Europe.The police have been on heightened alert after a series of terrorist attacks in Europe.
“We have all watched the recent terrorist atrocities unfold with a terrifying and depressing sense of horror and dread,” Mr. Hogan-Howe wrote in a commentary last weekend in the newspaper The Mail on Sunday, in which he announced the deployment of the 600 additional armed officers. “We have all watched the recent terrorist atrocities unfold with a terrifying and depressing sense of horror and dread,” Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Metropolitan Police commissioner, wrote in a commentary last weekend in the newspaper The Mail on Sunday, in which he announced the deployment of the 600 additional armed officers.
On July 7, 2005, 56 people died in four suicide bombings — two of which were not far from Russell Square — set off by Islamist militants in London. One of those attacks was on a Piccadilly Line subway train traveling between the King’s Cross and Russell Square stations, and another was on a double-decker bus in Tavistock Square, which is also in Bloomsbury. On July 7, 2005, 56 people died in four suicide bombings — two of which were not far from Russell Square — set off by Islamist militants in London.
The most recent murder in the country linked to terrorism occurred on May 22, 2013, when an off-duty Army soldier, Lee Rigby, was run over with a car and then hacked to death near a barracks in Woolwich, in Southeast London. Two British Muslim men of Nigerian origin, who had been known to intelligence officials for being radicalized, were convicted of murder; one was given a minimum 45-year sentence, and the other was sentenced to life in prison. The most recent murder in the country linked to terrorism occurred on May 22, 2013, when an off-duty Army soldier, Lee Rigby, was run over with a car and then hacked to death near a barracks in Woolwich, in Southeast London.
Reflecting on the heightened state of security across Europe, Ms. Edwards, the resident who came across the aftermath of the crime, said: “I don’t feel unsafe. I think every major city comes with its risks.” She added: “London as a city has been through a lot, has survived a lot and the people survived a lot. It’s at the back of your mind. But I think that if you’re constantly worried about it you just wouldn’t live here anyway.”