The mother of a Romanian man suspected of randomly stabbing an 11-year-old girl in London’s Leicester Square said last night: “I am deeply sorry for what happened to that little girl.”
The Mail traced Ioan Pintaru’s mother, Magda Girla, to her hometown of Pucioasa, about 65 miles northwest of the capital, Bucharest.
He said the last time he spoke to his 32-year-old son, whose middle name is Alexandru, was on the morning of the attack, Monday.
The next thing Ms Girla knew, her son had been arrested for allegedly stabbing the girl, an Australian tourist who was travelling in the UK, with a steak knife near the Lego store in one of the capital’s busiest tourist areas.
Asked what she thought about the incident, Ms Girla, a mother of two, pleaded with the Mail: ‘Please pass this message on to everyone. I am deeply sorry for what happened to that little girl.
Magda Girla (right), the mother of Ioan Pintaru (left), has apologised for what happened to the girl.
Ioan Pintaru, 32, allegedly put the 11-year-old girl in a headlock before attacking her.
“I suffer alongside her mother and I cannot describe the pain I feel. I am also a mother and I understand what she must be going through.”
Ms Girla revealed that Pintaru had worked as a long-distance truck driver for the past 10 years and had “no social life”.
He moved to England about six years ago and was in a long-term relationship with the mother of his four-year-old daughter.
In May 2022, Ms. Girla said, she returned home to Romania.
He returned to the UK in May to work, but a few weeks later he was involved in a road accident, forcing him to look for a new employer.
Mrs Girla, who is a full-time carer for her bedridden elderly father, said she had only heard from her son sporadically since returning to the UK and had no idea where he lived.
Pintaru was described as homeless when he appeared before District Judge Michael Snow at Westminster Magistrates’ Court this week. He is charged with attempted murder and possession of a bladed article in a public place.
Police officers stand in front of a cordoned-off area in Leicester Square, London.
The court heard that Pintaru allegedly lunged at the girl, grabbed her by the head and stabbed her eight times in the face, neck, shoulder and wrist. The girl will need plastic surgery to repair her injuries, District Judge Snow was told.
The incident could have been fatal if not for the quick reaction of a store security guard, who jumped on the attacker, disarming him and holding him down until the police arrived a few minutes later.
Police initially thought the girl’s mother had also been stabbed, but it later emerged that she was covered in her daughter’s blood as she desperately tried to help her.
Pintaru was remanded in custody and is due to appear at the Old Bailey on September 10.
The girl and her mother were Australian tourists on holiday in the capital, The Guardian reported.
