On 3 August 2016, a mass stabbing occurred in Russell Square, London. Six people were stabbed, one fatally, before a suspect, identified as Zakaria Bulhan, was apprehended by police and charged with

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

and

attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven ye ...

. The media initially linked the stabbing to terrorism, but later shifted its focus to possible mental disorders.

Events

London's

Metropolitan Police Service The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

and London Ambulance Service arrived at the scene of the attacks six minutes after emergency services were called at 22:33. Less than ten minutes later, a man was arrested at the scene after being tasered by police.

Victims

Six people, apparently selected at random, were stabbed. A 64-year-old American, Darlene Horton, died at the scene. She had planned to fly back to Florida the following day. An American man, a British man, an Australian man, an Australian woman, and an Israeli woman were injured. The British man, Bernard Hepplewhite, underwent emergency surgery for a serious abdominal wound and remained in hospital for several days.

Perpetrator

Zakaria Bulhan was a 19-year-old male Norwegian national of Somali descent. He was described as a Muslim who "didn't really talk about religion." He moved from Norway in 2002, and was unemployed and living with his mother and younger brother in Tooting,

South London South London is the southern part of London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, London Borou ...

. Not long before the stabbing, Bulhan completed his first studies at South Thames College, and had been a patient at a psychiatric facility near Russell Square. According to a family friend, Bulhan called an ambulance three separate times in the last six months, claiming he wanted to harm himself. In his 2017 book, ''Media, Diaspora and the Somali Conflict,'' Idil Osman speculates that the "cultural stigma" associated with mental illness in Somali society makes it less likely that individuals and families of disturbed persons like Bulhan will seek treatment.

Legal proceedings

Following his arrest, Bulhan was treated in hospital and later held in custody at a police station in South London. On 5 August, he was charged with the murder of Horton, along with five counts of

. He appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on 6 August, where he was remanded in custody. The trial was expected to take place in February 2017. In February 2017, Bulhan admitted killing US tourist Darlene Horton and injuring five others in Russell Square in 2016. He was sentenced on 7 February to be detained for an indefinite period in a maximum security hospital.

Investigation

The Metropolitan Police initially said they were exploring terrorism as a possible motive. They later said the investigation "increasingly points" to the attack being "triggered by mental health issues", and that the stabbings were random. Norwegian police cooperated in the investigation.

Reactions

In an interview after the attack, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said, "London is one of the safest capitals in the world". He added, "It is a reality in 2016 – especially when you look at what happened in Nice, in Brussels, in Munich, in parts of America – we've always got to be vigilant and never complacent." Kenan Malik described the attack as highlighting "the difficulty... in drawing a distinction between jihadi violence and the fury of disturbed minds."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell Square knife attack, 2016 Attacks in the United Kingdom in 2016 2016 in London August 2016 crimes in Europe August 2016 events in the United Kingdom Bloomsbury 2010s crimes in London Mass stabbings in the United Kingdom Stabbing attacks in 2016 Knife attacks