Leicester Square: Brave security guard tells how he tried to save 11-year-old Aussie girl allegedly stabbed eight times with a knife in London
A heroic security guard who saved an Australian girl who was stabbed in London’s Leicester Square has shared new details about the terrifying incident.
Abdullah, 29, helped disarm the alleged attacker of the 11-year-old girl after the man held her in a headlock and stabbed her eight times at 11:30 a.m. on Monday.
He held Ioan Pintaru, 32, who uses his middle name Alexandru, on the ground for several minutes before Metropolitan Police arrived and arrested him.
The 11-year-old NSW girl required plastic surgery after suffering serious injuries to her face, shoulder, wrist and neck during the alleged attack.
The girl’s 34-year-old mother was also injured and was found covered in her daughter’s blood after desperately trying to save her.
Abdullah said he ran towards the alleged knifeman after hearing a scream while he was working in a nearby shop.
‘A few more people joined us and we held him until the police arrived.
“It took maybe three or four minutes for the police to arrive, and they immediately took him into custody.”
Security guard Abdullah, 29, helped disarm the alleged attacker of the 11-year-old girl after the man allegedly held her in a headlock and stabbed her eight times at 11:30 a.m. on Monday
The 11-year-old NSW girl suffered injuries to her wrist, shoulder, face and neck (pictured blood on the pavement at the crime scene in Leicester Square, London)
Abdullah said he was not afraid as he charged towards the alleged knifeman.
“I would say I am a brave person. We Pakistanis are brave at heart. So I was not afraid,” he told the ABC.
“I’ve never seen anything like it, it was horrible,” he said.
Pintaru, a long-distance truck driver, has been charged with attempted murder and possession of a stabbing weapon in a public place after the alleged random attack.
He appeared at London’s Westminster court on Tuesday dressed in a grey tracksuit and spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth.
Ioan Pintaru, 32, has been charged with attempted murder and possession of a knife in a public place after the alleged attack in London
Police have not yet confirmed a motive for the attack but say it was not terror-related (pictured: police officers at the scene in Leicester Square in London)
Pintaru, who was described in court as homeless, has been remanded in custody until his next court appearance at the Old Bailey on September 10.
Police have not confirmed a motive for the alleged attack, but say it was not terror-related. They believe Pintaru did not know his alleged victims.
The girl was on holiday with her family when she was attacked.
She and her mother visited the TWG Tea shop on Leicester Square, a tourist attraction that attracts around 2.5 million visitors every week.