Revealed: Somali roots of suspect held over Russell Square knife rampage

Justin Tallis/AFP/Getty Images
Tom Powell4 August 2016

The teenager held for allegedly stabbing to death a woman in Russell Square has been identified as a Norwegian national of Somali origin.

Police have also confirmed that the woman stabbed to death last night in the bloody attack was an American national in her 60s.

She was pronounced dead at the scene while five others – four men and a woman - were taken to hospital with injuries.

The Norwegian teenager, 19, was arrested by officers after they tasered him to the ground at the scene, near to the British Museum and UCL’s main campus. He is now being held on suspicion of murder.

Police said early indicatons suggest mental health played a “significant factor” in the attack but terrorism remains “an active line of inquiry”.

The others injured were British, American, Israeli and Australian, confirmed Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley. Three have now been discharged from hospital.

Officers were called to Russell Square, Bloomsbury, at 10.33pm last night following reports of a man slashing passers-by at random.

This morning Londoners awoke to find a new elite team of 600 heavily armed anti-terrorism officers patroling the capital's streets, part of a bid to reassure the public.

Mr Rowley said: “As a precaution Londoners waking up today may notice an increase in armed officers on the streets. This is to provide reassurance and ensure people’s safety.

The victim's body is removed from the scene
PA

“We ask the public to remain calm, aware and alert.”

Dozens of armed police sealed off the square, which is lined with tourist hotels and multi-million pound houses, as paramedics treated the casualties.

A night porter at the Grange Clarendon Hotel watched as the suspect was subdued.

He told the Standard: “I could see four police officers restraining him, holding him face-down on the floor.

“He wasn’t struggling I think he knew it was over. One police officer was about to get his handcuffs on him and was speaking into his ear.

“Others were searching the street for something he threw.”

The forensic tent at the scene in Russell Square where the woman died
Alex Lentati

The suspect had been screaming moments earlier, one onlooker said.

Another eyewitness, Zuhair Awartani, added: “I arrived here at my hotel and I saw the guy getting arrested just on the block.

“There were two police cars and he was a man ... late 20s probably.”

One witness claimed she saw what she believed was the suspect “parading up and down” the street before the police arrived.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in