Swedish sword attack victim was 17-year-old girl, police say
Developed over time first seen 2 months ago
Police in Sweden have confirmed that a 17-year-old girl was killed and three other people injured when an 18-year-old man carried out a sword attack at Brinell School in Fagersta, central Sweden, on Friday, shortly after pupils returned from their summer break. The suspect, reportedly a former pupil who was wearing a helmet, was detained by officers who fired shots at the scene, though police have not said whether he was hit; the case is being treated as murder and attempted murder. The attack prompted a brief regional state of emergency and drew visits from Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and opposition leader Magdalena Andersson, who laid flowers at a makeshift memorial.
Alongside the girl who died, two boys aged 12 and 17 were seriously injured and a further person suffered minor injuries. Investigators carried out two house searches linked to the suspect, who has not been publicly named, and the region's state of emergency, declared on the day of the attack, had ended by Saturday morning. The school, which has just under 500 pupils and lies about 170km north-west of Stockholm, became the focus of national attention, with King Carl XVI Gustaf saying he received the news "with dismay and sadness" and Kristersson calling it a "serious incident" whose motive remains unclear.
- 17-year-old girl killed in Swedish school sword attack
- Two boys, aged 12 and 17, seriously injured; one more hurt
- 18-year-old ex-pupil arrested; police fired shots, case unconfirmed
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Sweden rarely sees violent attacks in schools, so an incident of this kind has caused widespread shock across the country. It happened at a high school in Fagersta, a town in central Sweden, on the first day back after the summer holidays, when the building would have been full of pupils and staff.
Police have confirmed the person who died was a 17-year-old girl, and say two boys, aged 12 and 17, were seriously hurt, with a third person slightly injured. An 18-year-old man, reported to be a former pupil at the school, has been arrested, and the case is being investigated as murder and attempted murder.
The attack has drawn a strong national response, including visits from Sweden's prime minister and opposition leader, and comments from King Carl XVI Gustaf. Because it involves a school, young victims and a rare use of extreme violence in a country with low rates of such crime, it has become a major story with wide public and political attention.