A hero security guard who rushed to save an Australian girl being stabbed in London’s Leicester Square has shared new details of the terrifying experience.
Abdullah, 29, helped disarm the 11-year-old girl’s alleged attacker after the man allegedly put her in a headlock and stabbed her eight times at 11.30am on Monday.
He held Ioan Pintaru, 32, known by his middle name Alexandru, on the ground for several minutes before the Metropolitan Police arrived and arrested him.
The 11-year-old girl from New South Wales needed plastic surgery after suffering serious injuries to her face, shoulder, wrist and neck during the alleged attack.
The girl’s 34-year-old mother was also injured and was found covered in her daughter’s blood after she desperately tried to save her.
Abdullah said he started running toward the alleged attacker after hearing a scream while working at a nearby store.
‘A couple more people joined us and we held him until the police arrived.
“It took the police maybe three or four minutes to arrive and they just arrested him.”
Security guard Abdullah, 29, helped disarm the 11-year-old girl’s alleged attacker after the man allegedly put her in a headlock and stabbed her eight times at 11.30am on Monday.
![Leicester Square: Brave security guard tells how he tried to save 11-year-old Australian girl allegedly stabbed eight times with a knife in London 7 The 11-year-old girl from New South Wales suffered injuries to her wrist, shoulder, face and neck (pictured, blood on the pavement at the scene in Leicester Square, London)](https://whatsnew2day.com/wp-content/uploads/cwv-webp-images/2024/08/Leicester-Square-Brave-security-guard-tells-how-he-tried-to.jpg.webp)
The 11-year-old girl from New South Wales suffered injuries to her wrist, shoulder, face and neck (pictured, blood on the pavement at the scene in Leicester Square, London)
Abdullah said he was not afraid as he lunged at the alleged attacker.
“I would say I am a brave person. Pakistanis are brave at heart. So I was not afraid,” she said. alphabet.
“I’ve never seen anything like that before, it was horrible,” he said.
Pintaru, a long-distance truck driver, has been charged with attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place following the alleged random attack.
He appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London on Tuesday wearing a grey tracksuit and spoke only to confirm his name and date of birth.
Pintaru, who was described as homeless in court, was remanded in custody until his next court hearing at the Old Bailey on September 10.
![Leicester Square: Brave security guard tells how he tried to save 11-year-old Australian girl allegedly stabbed eight times with a knife in London 9 Ioan Pintaru, 32, has been charged with attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place following the alleged attack in London.](https://whatsnew2day.com/wp-content/uploads/cwv-webp-images/2024/08/1723681805_671_Leicester-Square-Brave-security-guard-tells-how-he-tried-to.jpg.webp)
Ioan Pintaru, 32, has been charged with attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place following the alleged attack in London.
![Leicester Square: Brave security guard tells how he tried to save 11-year-old Australian girl allegedly stabbed eight times with a knife in London 11 Police have not confirmed a motive for the attack but say it was not terrorism-related (pictured: police officers at the scene in Leicester Square, London)](https://whatsnew2day.com/wp-content/uploads/cwv-webp-images/2024/08/1723681806_885_Leicester-Square-Brave-security-guard-tells-how-he-tried-to.jpg.webp)
Police have not confirmed a motive for the attack but say it was not terrorism-related (pictured: police officers at the scene in Leicester Square, London)
Police have not confirmed the motive for the alleged attack, but say it was not related to terrorism. They believe Pintaru did not know his alleged victims.
The girl was on vacation with her family when she was attacked.
She had been visiting the TWG tea shop with her mother in Leicester Square, a tourist hotspot that receives up to 2.5 million visitors each week.