Prosecutors in Pierce County in Tacoma, Washington, filed charges Friday against a teenager accused of stabbing five people, including a security guard.at Foss Middle School on Thursday.
Identified as Waleed Emad Essakhi, 16, faces five counts of first-degree assaultaccording to paperwork filed in Pierce County Superior Court. The charges indicate that Essakhi is a student at the school.
A report states that investigators have learned about the fight and stabbings that took place in the middle of afternoon classes at the school on Thursday.
According to the report, The most seriously injured victim had stab wounds in the chest and side and remains in intensive care. Another victim had a stab wound to the back. Other victims had cuts and lacerations on their bodies..
The security guard stated that he heard a cry for help and ran towards a hallway of the school where the non-public was trying to separate a group of students who were fighting. The prosecution says the guard was injured while disarming Essakhi amid the dispute.
Investigators interviewed the victims, who stated that Essakhi had stolen an electronic cigarette on Wednesday, which triggered the confrontation at the educational center on Thursday. Authorities recovered security camera recordings where the fight can be seen, Komo News reported.
According to officials, The four minor victims who were stabbed confronted Essakhi in the hallway and formed a “semicircle” around her..
“The video shows Essakhi slapping himself in the face and moving back and forth toward the victim, as if trying to provoke the victim to attack first,” the arrest report states. “At this point, Essakhi adopts an aggressive stance and appears to reach into his right pocket to remove an object and manipulate it. At the same time, he hits his face with his left hand, possibly to distract the victim.”
According to detectives, The aggressor had the knife in his hand when the four minors “started savagely hitting him while he brandished the knife at them.”.
“The boys pushed Essakhi against the wall and threw him to the ground,” the report explains.
Tacoma police showed up at the school when it was placed on lockdown, and both the victims and Essakhi were taken to the hospital.
According to Washington state law, 16- or 17-year-olds charged with a serious violent crime, including first-degree assault, are automatically remanded to the adult court system. At the first appearance before the judge, bail was set at $750,000.
Classes were suspended at the school on Friday. Tacoma Public Schools indicated that classes will resume Monday with additional non-public to support students.
“Tacoma is like a big, small city, and the ties are very strong,” reads a statement from Superintendent Josh Garcia. “Someone you know may have been affected by this event, and it takes compassion and courage on your part to ask how they are. Let’s be kind to each other.”
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