Teenage school attacker kills teacher; injures five others

A teenager has stabbed four teachers and two students at a public school in São Paulo, police say. Elizabeth Tenreiro, a 71-year-old teacher, died after going into cardiac arrest as a result of her wounds. The other victims were taken to a major public hospital.

The attacks began around 7:20 am at a school in Vila Sônia, a low-income neighborhood to the west of São Paulo city. The attacker is a 13-year-old student, authorities said. Education Secretary Renato Feder said the attacker “never reported any concerning behavior,” according to school staff. The motives behind the attack are still unclear.

According to local reports, episodes of violence between students were commonplace at the school. 

The São Paulo state governor, Tarcísio de Freitas, offered his condolences to the victims and the school’s students and staff. “I have no words to express my sorrow,” he told reporters. He is currently on an official trip to London. “The attacker has been taken into police custody and our efforts are going to help the injured and comfort their families,” he added.

Ricardo Nunes, the mayor of São Paulo, described Monday’s attack as “an event that leaves us speechless.”

State authorities say the school will be closed and a gradual reopening plan will be set into motion. 

School attacks have become more common in Brazil over the past decade. Between 2002 and 2011, there were only two such occurrences in Brazil. Since 2011, at least 11 more have been reported. 

Last month, a 17-year-old student in Monte Mor, a rural town in São Paulo state, was arrested after throwing a homemade bomb into a school. He was carrying a hatchet and wearing a Nazi armband. In November 2022, three people died and 11 were injured after a man attacked two schools in Aracruz, a city in the northern part of Espírito Santo, a southeastern Brazilian state.

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