Australia police arrest boy, 14, after stabbing at Sydney university
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Several university buildings were placed on lockdown as police established the crime scene.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SYDNEY - Australian police announced the arrest of a 14-year-old boy following a stabbing at the University of Sydney on July 2.
Emergency staff attended to a 22-year-old male student, who was taken to hospital in serious but stable condition, according to a statement from New South Wales state police. He was reportedly stabbed in the neck by a kitchen knife.
The authorities confirmed there is no ongoing threat to the community.
A spokesperson for the University of Sydney reported that a police operation was under way on the Camperdown campus, with police remaining on-site for investigations, Reuters reported.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, numerous police cars and ambulances quickly arrived at Western Avenue, which cuts through the centre of the campus, following reports of the stabbing incident on the morning of July 2.
Several university buildings were placed on lockdown as police established the crime scene. A knife was recovered at the scene, the police said.
Police were informed that the 14-year-old male suspect had left the scene and boarded a bus in Parramatta Road.
According to the police, he was seen leaving the scene dressed in camouflaged defence force uniform.
They later located him near Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, where he was taken into custody.
The boy was treated for cuts on his hand and is currently undergoing a mental health assessment, the police said.
The New South Wales joint counter-terrorism committee is investigating the matter.
“A motive or ideology has not been determined this time. As the matter is under investigation and the person of interest is a 14-year-old, I am unable to provide any comments about the matter,” counter-terrorism Assistant Commissioner Mark Walton said while he addressed the press on July 2.
A spokesperson for the New South Wales Police told The Sydney Morning Herald that the teenager and the alleged victim were strangers to one another.
Knife crime has been in the spotlight in Australia in 2024.
A stabbing spree in a Sydney mall on April 13 left six people dead suspect in the mall attack was shot
Just days after the mall incident, on April 15, a knife attack at a Sydney church
A 16-year-old boy was charged with a terrorism offence for the knifing of Assyrian Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a live-streamed church service that day. An Australian counter-terrorism team arrested seven teenagers
Weeks later, on May 5, the police shot dead a teenager
The series of stabbing incidents prompted the New South Wales government to announce new measures to “get knives off the street and boost community safety” in May 2024.
In a statement on May 7, the officials introduced “reforms to target possession of knives, particularly among young people (to) reduce knife crime” such as granting the police the authority to perform checks on people for knives without a warrant in designated areas, including shopping malls, sporting venues and public transport stations.
The sale of knives to children under 16 is prohibited. Selling knives to those who are 16 or 17 without a good reason is also prohibited.
