The 12-year-old was transferred at the start of the year to this school in Vantaa, which welcomes 800 students aged 7 to 15 spread across two sites north of the capital Helsinki, in Finland.
Equipped with a revolver-type firearm belonging to one of his relatives, he opened fire on Tuesday morning, killing a boy in his class of the same age as him and seriously injuring two girls – one a Finnish citizen and the other another of dual Finnish and Kosovar nationality.
As he fled, he then threatened, still with his firearm, students who were going to another school, police said Wednesday.
An open listening cell
The boy will not be incarcerated because he is under 15 and cannot be found criminally responsible, but he will be handed over to the country’s social services. Following the attack, Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said he was “deeply shocked” by the event, adding that his thoughts were with the victims, their parents, other students and teachers.
“In the coming days, we must be there for children and young people, offer them words of comfort and show them that we care about them,” he said. “They may be scared and have questions. It’s important that we talk about the incident in our homes.”
A psychological counseling unit for parents and children was set up by the city on Wednesday. “We are now focusing on supporting” children, Vantaa city deputy mayor Katri Kalske told AFP.
Flags at half-mast across the country
The incident is being discussed with students in all of the city’s schools in an “age-appropriate” manner. The local church will also provide support to those affected. Flags on public buildings and institutions were flown at half-mast for the day in tribute to the victims. The Interior Ministry encouraged the entire country to join in the mourning.
In front of the school, several people braved the snow to come and leave flowers, candles and stuffed animals and observe a moment of contemplation, according to an AFP journalist on site.
Violence between children
“(Parents) must be with their children and listen (…) hear what they say,” reacted to AFP Tuula Jouskari, a 70-year-old resident. “We have a good education and (good) schools. I don’t understand why this little boy (…) is in such a bad situation.”
On a global level, it is very unusual for such a young child to be suspected of such a large-scale crime, Elina Pekkarinen, Finland’s Children’s Rights Defender, told the STT news agency.
“For years, (we have been repeating) that we must take violence between children in society seriously,” she lamented. Acts of violence, particularly among children under 15, have been increasing for several years, according to Elina Pekkarinen.
A similar tragedy in the 2000s
The Nordic country experienced similar tragedies in the 2000s. In November 2007, an 18-year-old man opened fire in a school (middle and high school) in Jokela, about fifty kilometers north of the capital Helsinki, killing eight people: the director, the nurse and six students. The assailant committed suicide after the attack.
A year later, in September 2008, a shooting took place in a vocational school in Kauhajoki (West), perpetrated by Matti Juhani Saari, 22, killing ten people. He also committed suicide shortly after.
And in 2019, a student with a sword broke into a vocational school in the town of Kuopio, killing a 23-year-old woman and injuring nine people.