Southport stabbing: Police granted more time to question suspect arrested on suspicion of murder
Five children remain in hospital in a critical condition.
Merseyside Police have been granted more time to question the 17-year-old arrested in connection with a mass stabbing in Southport.
Bebe King, aged six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, aged seven, were killed on the day of Monday’s attack on Hart Street, while nine-year-old Alice Dasilva Aguiar died in hospital in the early hours of Tuesday morning as a result of her injuries.
Eight other children suffered stab wounds during the attack, and five of them are currently in a critical condition in hospital. Two adults were also seriously injured after ‘bravely trying to protect the children who were being attacked’.
Shortly after the attack took place, Merseyside Police arrested a 17-year-old male from an address in Banks near Southport, on suspicion or murder and attempted murder. Merseyside Police say that a name shared on social media in connection with the suspected attacker is ‘incorrect’. The suspect, who was born in Cardiff, cannot be identified for legal reasons.
The law allows officers up to 96 hours to hold a suspect in custody for serious crimes, and Merseyside Police confirmed on Wednesday afternoon that local magistrates have granted officers additional time to question the teenager, should it be required.