Nottingham, England, has been left in shock after a series of horrifying attacks claimed the lives of three people and injured three more.
On Tuesday morning, the 31-year-old suspect began his rampage by fatally stabbing two 19-year-old University of Nottingham students, Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar, who were near the student housing that morning. His murderous spree didn’t end there however; the individual later killed a 65-year-old school caretaker Ian Coates, stealing his van in the process.
The deadly episode then came to a close when police subdued the attacker with a stun gun that had been used after he drove the stolen van into a group of pedestrians. The attack that spanned around 90 minutes has yet to be labeled terrorism by authorities.
U.K. Home Secretary Suella Braverman gave comment on the horrific event in Nottingham by saying police are “working flat out to establish the full facts and provide support to everyone affected”. Nottinghamshire police, with assistance from counterterror officers, are still attempting to unravel the events that took place and piece together the suspect’s mental health and background.
The suspect is being reported as originally from West Africa and has lived legally in Britain for many years, with no criminal record attached. Much of the motives behind his actions remain hazy and will be pieced together by the police as they try to come to terms with this horrifying tragedy.
The attack, yet to be labeled terrorism, has left three families in grief and the university city in shock.