Teacher dies and four are injured after knife attack at SP school

A 71-year-old teacher died and four people were injured after a knife attack by a teenager this Monday morning (27), in São Paulo.

According to the police, a 13-year-old teenager attacked teachers and students at the Thomazia Montoro State School, in the west zone of São Paulo, at the beginning of the morning shift. Professor Elisabete Tenreiro was taken to the Hospital das Clínicas with a cardiac arrest, but did not resist.

According to information from G1 and Folha de São Paulo, four teachers and a student were allegedly hit by the teenager’s blows. The victims are doing well and are treated at hospitals in the region. A second student was reportedly admitted in a state of shock but uninjured.

Images from the school’s internal security circuit show the hooded teenager invading the classroom and stabbing the teacher. He attacks another teacher, but is restrained by two women who manage to immobilize him and one of them takes the knife from his hands.

“She immobilized the aggressor, had the bladed weapon removed from him. If it weren’t for that action, the tragedy would have been greater”, said Captain Guilherme Derrite, secretary of Public Security for the state.

Parents heard by the report say that fights at school are common, and that the author of this morning’s attacks was involved in a confrontation with another student last week. There is a suspicion that racist offenses were the reason for the attack, according to reports from other parents to BandNews FM.

The Secretary of State for Education, Renato Feder, stated that the author of the attack had been transferred to the school on March 15, and that the principal had not received any notice “that would draw attention. The school was caught off guard”. He also said that the institution was served by a school patrol that acted quickly and apprehended the student, who was taken to the 34th DP to register the occurrence.

Officials commented on the attack

On social media, the state governor, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), lamented the attack. “I have no words to express my sadness at the news of the attack on students and teachers at the Thomazia Montoro State School, in Vila Sônia. The 13-year-old teenager has already been apprehended and our efforts are focused on helping the injured and welcoming the family members,” he said.

Mayor Ricardo Nunes said that “the public security and health forces acted immediately, and we will continue to offer all the necessary support to the victims and their families”.

The vice-president of the Republic, Geraldo Alckmin, stated that “the school environment must foster the development of our children and adolescents and foster a culture of peace, with manifestations of violence being unacceptable”.

“I convey my feelings and prayers to the family of teacher Elisabete Tenreiro, to the injured and to the entire community of the State School Thomazia Montoro, in São Paulo, hit by a regrettable occurrence”, he said on social media.

The Union of Teachers of Official Teaching of the State of São Paulo (Apeoesp) stated, in a note, that it has been demanding measures from the state government for years to reduce violence in the school environment.