PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Clearwater Police Chief Eric Gandy said the stabbing of two students at a local high school on Thursday morning was an "intentional and targeted" attack.
During a news conference on Friday, Chief Gandy said the suspect had a lengthy, handwritten manifesto where detectives learned the suspect idolized serial killers and terrorists.
ABC Action News is not naming the suspect.
Police said the 14-year-old stabbed two other students around 11:20 a.m. at Countryside High School in the school's busy main concourse area. The victims were both boys, one a 14-year-old in ninth grade and one a 16-year-old in eleventh.
According to Gandy, the suspect has been a student at the school since January.
Gandy said other students jumped in to help and began applying pressure to the victims' wounds.
"The suspect stabbed victim 1 in the neck as he walked past him and shortly after stabbed victim 2 in the chest and abdomen," said Chief Gandy.
The victims were taken to a local hospital for treatment. The younger victim, who was stabbed in the neck, was treated and released on Thursday night. The 16-year-old victim was stabbed in the chest and stomach. Gandy said he underwent surgery and is now in the ICU.
According to CPD, the victims were chosen at random.
"Had we not intervened, he would have stabbed more people," said Chief Gandy.
The 14-year-old was taken into custody at gunpoint within minutes of the stabbing, police said.
After he identified the suspect Friday, Gandy said he would no longer name him because he didn't want to glorify the violence.
"The victims went to school yesterday to learn and to be with friends and they were violently and suddenly attacked by this individual," said Chief Gandy.
Police said the suspect has no previous disciplinary history. He's now charged with two counts of attempted first-degree murder.
Gandy said police are reaching out to other school districts, including out of the state, where the suspect was previously a student, to see if there were any indicators or signs that might have been missed.
Students were in lockdown for two hours after the stabbing before they were able to be picked up by their parents.
"He's scared," one mom told us while waiting to pick up her son, who's a senior at the school. "And, you know, he shouldn't be. He should be able to go to school and not worry about these things, but I guess this is the day and age we live in. It's terrifying."
