Four children killed in daycare center attack in southern Brazil

Parents gather after a man killed four children in a daycare center. Photo: Social media

A 25-year-old man killed four children (aged 4 to 7) on Wednesday morning at a private daycare center in Blumenau, a city in the southern state of Santa Catarina, officials say. Another five children, aged 2 and younger, were injured — one of them is in critical condition.

The attacker reportedly carried a hatchet and a knife. He turned himself in after leaving the crime scene. Governor Jorginho Mello of Santa Catarina announced that the police will investigate whether the assailant had any accomplices. Details are still emerging about the children killed and the assailant.

This latest episode of violence against schools has taken place just ten days after a teenager stabbed six people in a school in São Paulo, killing one teacher.

Attacks on schools have become more common in Brazil over the past decade. Since 2002, Brazil has recorded at least 23 school attacks, according to a study by the University of São Paulo’s Monitor of Political Debate Online. Half of these have occurred over the past year, including the one in Blumenau.

Researchers say the attacks in Brazil follow international patterns, as they are often carried out by white males with a history of psychiatric disorders.

Last month, a 17-year-old student in Monte Mor, a rural town in São Paulo state, was arrested after throwing a homemade bomb into a school. He was carrying a hatchet and wearing a Nazi armband.

In November 2022, three people died and 11 were injured after a man attacked two schools in Aracruz, a city in the southeastern state of Espírito Santo.

Authorities have expressed condolences with the victims’ families. On Twitter, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said “there is no greater pain to a family than losing their children or grandchildren.” Governor Mello declared a three-day official mourning period.