Spanish Teenager Detained For Killing Teacher With Crossbow, Injuring 3 Others At School

Spanish police officials on Monday detained a teenager, suspected of killing a teacher and wounding several children at a high school. The identity of the boy has not been revealed yet.

The boy reportedly used a bladed weapon to kill the teacher, while some media reports said he used a crossbow and a knife. It was not clear if the boy was a student at the same school where the male teacher was killed and three others injured. The Joan Fuster school is in the working class neighborhood of Sant Andreu and teaches children between the ages of 12 and 16, according to the Associated Press (AP), which added that four students were slightly injured.

The age of the boy is being reported differently in various news sources. The AP report said that the boy was 14 years old, while the Independent and the BBC reported he was 13 years old.

The teenager had reportedly knocked on the door of a classroom and fired at the female teacher, who arrived to open the door. She was shot at point blank range and suffered injuries, the Telegraph reported, citing Barcelona’s El Periódico newspaper. Thereafter, he reportedly aimed a shot at the teacher’s daughter, who was also injured. When a male teacher from a nearby classroom heard their screams and came to their rescue, he was shot in the chest with a crossbow, the Telegraph reported, adding that the injuries proved fatal.

The attacker said to the class: “Calm down,” the Independent reported, citing a local newspaper, adding: “I am not interested in you.”

The teen also entered another classroom and shot at a student, the Telegraph reported. The students were soon evacuated from the building.

Crossbows are considered weapons in Spain for which owners require a license.

Xavier Trias, the mayor of Barcelona, said he was “appalled” by the incident and offered support to the families of victims.