12-year-old child who shot classmates at school in Finland claims “persecution”

“The suspect stated during interrogation that he was a victim of harassment, which was confirmed by preliminary investigation,” the police said in a statement, adding that the young man was transferred to the school at the beginning of the year.

The school where the shooting occurred is an elementary school that has about 800 students and 90 employees daily.

Vantaa Deputy Director of Education and Training Katri Kalske said that a crisis office had already been convened and explained that the police were responsible for any information about the incident, Finnish channel Yle reported.

This incident forced Finland to declare a day of mourning this Wednesday.

Around 8:00 a.m. local time (6:00 a.m. in Lisbon), all public buildings and institutions lowered their flags to half-mast in honor of the victims, the Finnish Ministry of the Interior reported on its website, inspiring the entire country. join in mourning. .

A 12-year-old boy armed with a revolver opened fire at his school in Vantaa, north of the capital Helsinki, on Tuesday morning, killing a boy the same age in his class and seriously wounding two other girls – one Finnish. and another, who has dual Finnish-Kosovo citizenship, before his arrest, according to police.

According to the Finnish channel MTV uutiset, the attacker was wearing a mask and noise-cancelling headphones when committing the crime.

The attack was deliberate, police said at a news conference hours after the shooting at the school, which has 800 students aged seven to 15 at two locations.

Students returned to school on Wednesday morning, Vantaa City Council vice-president Katri Kalske told AFP. A consultation center has been created in the city.

“Our focus right now is to support” children, he stressed, adding that the attack would be discussed with students at all schools in the city in an “age-appropriate” manner.

The local church will also provide support to those affected.