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Pupil in beheading threat
Oct 10 2004
A 10-year-old Asian pupil threatened to behead a seven year-old schoolboy with a Stanley knife after watching gruesome TV images from Iraq.
Paul Williams told how the young thug threatened his grandson Nathan outside the gates of Highgate Primary School in Woodside, Dudley where both were pupils.
The 10 year-old was subsequently arrested by police and it is understood that he has now been expelled.
His victim was uninjured but is now receiving counselling after suffering sleepless nights over the chilling incident.
Grandad Mr Williams said: The 10 year-old was pretending to be an Iraqi assassin who was going to cut Nathans head off like the American hostages.
A few of the other kids have said that he had been going around making these claims for a few weeks.
He was waving the knife around in front of Nathans face as he made his way out of the school gates.
Nathan has been in bits since. Hes really shaken up and hasnt been able to sleep properly. He has been having counselling because it upset him so much.
News of the school attack came just two days after it was announced that British hostage Ken Bigley had been executed in Iraq.
Mr Williams, from Dudley, claimed the young knife attacker had previously targeted Nathans 10 year-old brother Martin.
It had always previously been Martin who was subjected to bullying by this boy and two of his friends, he said.
This had been going on for some time but Im not aware that he ever pulled out a knife on Martin.
We have been told that the parents of the 10 year-old lad actually condone him carrying the knife and say that it is for his own protection.
Nathans mum Joanna Williams, 30, from Holly Hall, Dudley, told the Sunday Mercury she was horrified that a pupil had managed to carry a knife on to school premises.
I was livid when I heard what had happened, she said.
Martin had been bullied by this boy for over a year, but it was Nathan he pulled the knife out on.
Three of them approached him, including the ringleader who had a Stanley knife. Nathan said he ran the knife down his arm and then down his front, telling him that he would use it.
He was completely traumatised by it. We rang the police straight away when we found out what had happened and they quickly arrived.
Mrs Williams and her husband Jason, 33, both unemployed, said they have spoken to the school about their anger at the incident.
We have been told unofficially that the attacker has been expelled, she said.
I feel a bit happier that he is not at the school anymore. Security has been tightened up, too.
Nathan is still upset and our GP has arranged counselling for him because he hasnt been able to sleep properly at night.
A Dudley Council education spokesman said: We are always very concerned when we hear of violent incidents involving pupils. No school condones violence.
This is now a police matter and we will work with them during their investigation.
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: The incident was reported to us at 3.40pm on Friday, September 24.
We were told that a 10 year-old boy had threatened another boy aged seven. Officers attended and arrested the 10 year-old.
