More victims, bloodshed were intended in sword attack at Brandon high school: police

WARNING | This story contains graphic details.

A 16-year-old boy accused of seriously injuring another student with a sword at Brandon's Neelin High School had plans for more victims but was stopped by the swift actions of officials and officers, the southwestern Manitoba city's police chief says.

A 15-year-old boy is in stable condition in hospital, recovering from stab wounds to the chest, forearms, hands and thigh, police have said.

"We know that certainly the harms that were intended were beyond the individual victim involved," Chief Tyler Bates said at a news conference on Wednesday. 

"We do believe that those intentions were interrupted — that the response of our officers prevented further bloodshed."

Bates wouldn't go into further details about what exactly happened Tuesday afternoon.

"The finer details will come to light in due course," he said.

The teen accused and the victim are both students at the school and knew one another, he said. The motivation behind the attack, though, is still under investigation, Bates said.

Police were called at 1:15 p.m. and by 1:22 p.m. the 16-year-old was in custody. Officers used a stun gun to subdue and disarm him.

"In the face of mortal danger, our Brandon Police Service officers demonstrated exceptional bravery, professionalism and restraint. They ran towards the threat, risking their own safety with both composure and care," Bates said.

That composure resulted in the outcome being far less tragic than it could have been if officers chose instead to use their firearms, he said.

"Use-of-force situations are dynamic, they're chaotic, and they require split-second decision-making under immense stress."

Bates said officers were responding to what they were told was someone armed with a sword and "going crazy."

It was an incident involving someone not only presenting a lethal threat, but who had already attempted to take someone's life, he said.