A straight-A student reportedly stabbed five other students at a high school in Orem, Utah. These five victims are expected to survive their stab wounds.
USA Today reported that five male students were stabbed in the school's locker room before the perpetrator stabbed himself. The attack took place on Tuesday shortly before 8 A.M. The high school was identified as Mountain View High School.
The school had to be placed on a lockdown after the incident to ensure the safety of the other students. No other injuries were reported aside from the five boys.
Orem Police Chief Gary Giles said that the suspect is in custody and is 16 years old. Staff members were able to stop the student from further stabbing others by boxing him into a small area. A school resource police officer was in the building during the time the attack took place before other police officers came. The student was tased before being taken in.
The knife that the perpetrator used is said to be a blade that is around three inches long. The wounds of the victim were mostly in the head, neck and upper torso areas.
Utah Valley Hospital spokeswoman Janet Frank said in a statement to Washington Post that two of the victims are in critical but stable condition. Two are in fair condition while one was released from the hospital.
Giles said they are still investigating the motive as to why the 16-year-old started stabbing other students. He added, "Was it a fight, is it somebody upset with somebody, is there more to it? And I don't know the answer to that."
The suspect is said to be a new sophomore student and was home-schooled before he was sent to the high school this school year. He had no records of disciplinary issues in the past months. Meanwhile, counselors and social workers were deployed at the school for those who need assistance.
