Girl stabbed ‘eight times with steak knife’ in Leicester Square attack that left her needing plastic surgery

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A man has appeared in court charged with attempted murder after an 11-year-old girl was stabbed in Leicester Square.

Ioan Pintaru was also charged with possession of a bladed article early on Tuesday and was remanded in custody.

The 32-year-old appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court later on Tuesday morning, wearing a grey prison-issue sweatshirt.

The court heard Pintaru, of no fixed address, is a Romanian citizen, and the charges were read to him through an interpreter during the 10-minute hearing.

Prosecutor David Burns said the girl and her mother were in Leicester Square as tourists when the child was stabbed eight times with a steak knife, leaving her with wounds to the face, neck, shoulder and wrist.

He added: “In relation to the complainant – she was taken to hospital and she currently resides in hospital where she’s undergoing treatment. I understand that she required plastic surgery for the injuries she sustained.”

The Metropolitan Police were alerted to an incident at the central London tourist hotspot at around 11.30am on Monday morning.

The 11-year-old victim was found with stab wounds near the TWG Tea shop, which is beside the Lego and M&M stores.

She was rushed to hospital, where her injuries were assessed as serious but not life-threatening.

It was initially believed that the girl’s mother, a 34-year-old woman, was also hurt, however, it was later confirmed that blood from her daughter’s injuries had been mistaken for injuries of her own.

Detective Chief Superintendent Christina Jessah said: “This is a horrific incident and our thoughts are with the victims and their family. We will continue to provide support to them over the coming days and weeks.

“I would like to pay tribute to the members of the public, including staff from local businesses, who bravely intervened in this incident. They put themselves at risk and showed the best of London in doing so.”

Pintaru was remanded in custody and will next appear at the Old Bailey on 10 September.