Man with knife stabs people in Finnish city of Turku

Monday, August 21, 2017

At 16:02 local time (UTC+3) on Friday a man with a knife stabbed apparently random people at Market Square, Turku, Finland. Police said there were eight injured and two dead. The attacker ran somewhere else and started stabbing more people after his first attack. The police shot him in the leg and arrested him at 16:05.

Police said they were treating it as a terrorist act. Police identified the attacker as an 18-year-old from Morocco and confirmed his identity, but didn't release it.

Officials said security was tightened across Finland.

In a statement, Police said they were investigating the case as an instance of terrorism: "The act had been investigated as murder, but during the night we received additional information which indicates that the criminal offences are now terrorist killings." Crista Granroth, speaking from the National Bureau of Investigation, said the attacker targeted women: "It seems that the suspect chose women as his targets, because the men who were wounded were injured when they tried to help, or prevent the attacks." She said of the eight injured, six were women.

Police arrested four other suspects, and issued an international warrant for arrest of another suspect.

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Sources

Merrit Kennedy. "2 Dead In Stabbing Attack In Turku, Finland" — National Public Radio (NPR), August 20, 2017
"Finnish police identify knife attacker" — Euronews, August 19, 2017
"Finland killings: Stabbings in Turku a 'terror attack'" — BBC News, August 19, 2017

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