Hainault: Boy, 14 , killed in a sword attack 'attended same school' as Nottingham stabbing victim

• Police are waiting to question the Hainault sword attack suspect who remains in hospital after crashing his van into a house

The 14-year-old boy killed in a sword attack in east London is understood to have attended the same school as a medical student who was fatally stabbed in Nottingham last year.

Bancroft’s, an independent school in east London, was first hit by tragedy last summer when former pupil Grace O’Malley-Kumar died as she tried to protect her friend Barnaby Webber as he was fatally stabbed.

The boy who died in Hainault on Tuesday, who has not yet been identified by police, also attended the school.

His mother is understood to work at a school nearby.

Earlier today, Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said a female police officer came close to losing her hand in the attack in Hainault which also left four other people injured.

Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said one male officer has serious injuries to his hand, while a female colleague was in surgery for several hours yesterday after suffering “horrifically serious” wounds to her arm.

Speaking to LBC, Sir Mark said: "People say officers run towards danger. What you’ve actually seen on some of the videos that are sort of around social media and on new sites such as your own, you actually see what that really looks like. You’ve got officers running towards someone who’s waving a sword.”

A 36-year-old man was tasered and arrested in Hainault on Tuesday morning, then taken to hospital, after sustaining injuries when his van hit a house.

Four other people were injured in the attack – two Met officers who suffered wounds that require surgery, but are not life-threatening, and two members of the public whose injuries are also not thought to be life-threatening.

Chief Superintendent Stuart Bell, of the Metropolitan Police, said he did not believe it was a targeted attack, and it is not believed to be terror-related.

The sword-wielding suspect was tasered and arrested at the scene but has not yet been interviewed because of his injuries, the Met said.

Business Minister Kemi Badenoch told GMB tougher legislation is needed to prevent incidents similar to the Hainault stabbings, stating "murder is banned and people still kill".

Campaign groups have moved to ban certain weapons such as zombie knives and swords.

Ms Badenoch said: "There has to be a limit to what we do before we just stop knives being produced, people have knives for legitimate reasons, but we should not be having machetes, zombie knives, samurai swords and so on for people to kill other people."

Dramatic footage captured the suspect being cornered and tasered by officers on a residential driveway.

The video shows how officers shout at the suspect, saying “Don’t move, don’t f****** move” after he is brought to the ground by three separate taser discharges.

The words “suspect contained” are eventually heard as a female officer pulls the sword away from the attacker.

A Buckingham Palace spokesman said the King’s “thoughts and prayers are with all those affected” by the “horrific” stabbings, adding: “In particular, the family of the young victim who has lost his life.”

The force was initially called to reports of a vehicle being driven into a house.

Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe said there has been speculation about the suspect’s background, including police contact with him, and “despite urgent and extensive checks today, we have found no trace of a prior incident involving him so far, but we will of course continue to make those inquiries”.

The man attacked a 14-year-old boy who had just left his house to walk to school, ITV News' Chloe Keedy reports

An eyewitness told ITV News of the moment she saw a man fatally stab a teenage boy in Hainault, London.

Aiste Dabasinskaaite said she was coming out of her home on Tuesday morning when she was approached by a man who asked her for the address of the area they were in.

"I thought he might have been lost or he might have crashed his car," she said, describing how his car was "smoking" after it had hit a nearby wall.

She said: "Once I told the address, he sort of moved closer towards me, he put his foot on my foot so I couldn't back off and then that's when he like drew out the sword.

"It was arm's length. It was honestly petrifying. I just ran down the road, I didn't even look back to see if he was chasing me," she added.

Shortly after, the man attacked a 14-year-old boy, who had just left his house to walk to school.

“As he’s turned around, he’s struck him on the face… he was dead on the spot. It’s quite traumatising now. I can’t stop envisioning the boy’s face.”

Speaking about what he saw of the suspect, Mr Fernando said: “He was running around, still after the police officers came, with the sword in his hand looking for victims.”

Other footage showed the suspect being chased by police as an officer is heard shouting “Lock your doors” as the sword-wielding man entered residential gardens.

Officers could be heard yelling “Come here”, “Come this way” and “Drop the sword” at the suspect, who could be seen climbing on top of an outbuilding and dropping into a garden.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak described the incident as “shocking”, adding: “Such violence has no place on our streets”.

Footage seen by PA shows a man in a yellow jumper chasing after an ambulance while holding a sword as a body lies motionless on the ground.

The home security video shows an ambulance parked next to the body lying on the road in Laing Close before the ambulance quickly drives away from the scene and the man runs after it, shouting.

In another video clip, sent by an anonymous resident, a police car arrives before the man verbally confronts the police and shouts “Is there anybody here who believes in God?” while standing next to the motionless body.

A voice is heard shouting “Drop the sword” before a police officer approaches the man and sprays a substance in his direction before he retreats.

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