A 14-year-old girl has been charged with three counts of attempted murder and two counts of possessing a bladed article on school premises following a stabbing incident at the Co-op Academy in Blackley, north Manchester, on Tuesday.
The suspect was arrested after two students, a boy and a girl both aged 14, and a 27-year-old male staff member were stabbed. Police confirmed that their injuries were consistent with stab wounds but described them as non-serious. All three victims have since been discharged from hospital.
Counter-Terrorism Policing North-West is leading the investigation, though police have not declared the incident a terrorist attack and are keeping an open mind as to the motivation. The girl was initially arrested on suspicion of assault and detained under the Mental Health Act before being charged.
Chief Superintendent David Meeney, Manchester’s district commander, stated that further information had come to light which prompted the involvement of counter-terrorism officers. He added that there was no information to indicate any further threat to the public, and local officers remain in the area.
During the incident, the school was placed into lockdown, and students were told not to leave their classrooms. Some parents expressed frustration, saying they had not been informed directly by the school and had to rely on messages from their children to understand what had happened.
