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Seven-year-old boy stabbed to death by 75-year-old woman in random attack, Swiss prosecutors say

Prosecutors trying to determine motive prepare psychological evaluation

Tom Batchelor
Friday 22 March 2019 10:03 EDT
Swiss prosecutors puzzling over motive in Kosovo boy's killing

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A seven-year-old boy has been stabbed to death by a 75-year-old woman in an apparently random attack in the Swiss city of Basel, prosecutors said.

The woman, who was not named, allegedly stabbed the boy in the neck as he was making his way home from school on Thursday.

The boy, whose family comes from Kosovo, died shortly afterwards.

The woman, who is not believed to have known the boy or his family, turned herself in after the attack.

Prosecutors said they were trying to determine what motive the suspect may have had but the woman, who is Swiss, may not be criminally liable and a psychological evaluation is being prepared.

The boy was discovered by his teacher shortly after midday lying injured on the ground around 200 metres from the school. He had been travelling home from school by bike.

He was taken to the University Children's Hospital of Basel where he underwent emergency surgery but died a short time later.

Swiss media reported the boy’s mother had been living in Switzerland for seven years after moving from the Kosovan town of Lipljan.

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