Hostage situation involving 13 infants at Curitiba school – perpetrator dead after intervention
A man with a history of schizophrenia held 13 children aged 4–5 as hostages at a kindergarten in Brazil. Special forces neutralised the perpetrator after approximately 3 hours of negotiations.
Hostage situation involving 13 infants at Curitiba school ends with perpetrator's death
Thirteen children aged 4 to 5 years old were held hostage for approximately three hours at a municipal kindergarten in Curitiba, in southern Brazil. According to In.gr, the crisis ended with the neutralisation of the perpetrator by special forces.
The man arrived at the school by bicycle, jumped over the fence and locked himself in a classroom with the infants, threatening to set the building on fire. He had a knife, a lighter and flammable liquid, which he spilled in the classroom. Initial reports of a firearm proved false – it was a replica gun.
"We managed to neutralise this person and rescue the 13 children, who were handed over to emergency services," said Colonel Alexander López Dias, head of special forces in Paraná state, in a press conference.
During the negotiations, the perpetrator kept the children gathered around him, with one of them on his lap. As the infants began to become distressed, the man struck them. At least one child was injured.
"When we realised that the children were becoming increasingly stressed and that the perpetrator had begun to physically abuse them, we chose to intervene in order to prevent the worst from happening," said Colonel López Dias. During the intervention, gunshots and loud explosions were heard, similar to flash-bang grenade detonations, according to Brazilian media.
Video from Brazilian television networks showed teachers and members of management leading the other children from the school out of the building during the crisis.
After the perpetrator's death, police released his details. It was revealed that he had a history of schizophrenia. His motives and any possible connection to the kindergarten remain unclear at this stage of the investigation.
"The 13 children are alive and safe. After moments of great tension and anxiety, this is the news we were all waiting for," said Curitiba mayor Eduardo Pimentel via Instagram.
Brazil has recorded several attacks on educational institutions in recent years. In April 2023, a man killed four children with an axe at a daycare centre in Blumenau, also in the southern part of the country.
Source: In.gr