Teen in court over London deadly knife attack on US tourist

LONDON: A teenager accused of murdering a US tourist and injuring five others in a knife attack in central London made his first court appearance on Saturday and was remanded in custody.

Zakaria Bulhan is charged with the murder of 64-year-old retired teacher Darlene Horton plus five counts of attempted murder following the incident on Wednesday evening in Russell Square.

The 19-year-old, who lives in Tooting in south London, is a Norwegian national of Somali origin who came to Britain as a young child in 2002.

After being charged on Friday night, he appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court for a procedural hearing on Saturday, where he spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth.

Wearing a light grey tracksuit, he held his face in his hand as the names of the victims were read out. When asked if he understood the charges, he nodded and gave the judge a thumbs-up.

Bulhan was remanded in custody and will next appear at a higher court, the Old Bailey in London, on Tuesday.

Horton, a mother of two, was the wife of a professor at Florida State University, Richard Wagner, who had been teaching summer classes in London.

She died just hours before she had been due to fly home.

The other victims were named as Martin Hoenisch, Lillie Selletin, David Imber, Bernard Hepplewhite and Yovel Lewronski.

Police earlier said the nationalities of the three men were British, American and Australian, and the women were an Australian and an Israeli.

Russell Square is close to the heart of central London and is a popular location for tourist hotels. It is close to both the British Museum and the University of London.