LONDON - The woman stabbed to death in an attack on a street in the British capital was the wife of a Florida State University psychology professor, the university said Thursday in a statement.
Darlene Horton, the wife of Richard Wagner, was killed the day the university's summer study abroad program ended. While the university has named Wagner as a family member, FSU has yet to explicitly release the victim's name.
Wagner was teaching in the summer study abroad program. Students had already returned to the U.S., but he and Horton remained. The couple was expected to return to Florida today, according to university officials.
"There are no words to express our heartache over this terrible tragedy," Florida State University President John Thrasher said. "We are shocked that such senseless violence has touched our own FSU family, and we will do all we can to assist Professor Wagner and his loved ones, as well as his friends and colleagues in the Psychology department, as they mourn."
Scotland Yard Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley identified the suspect as a 19-year-old man, a Norwegian national of Somali ancestry. He said police had so far found no evidence of radicalization or anything that would suggest that he was motivated by terrorism.
Five people were injured in the attack - their nationalities are Australian, American, Israeli and British, Rowley said.
"Whilst the investigation is not yet complete - all of the work that we have done so far, increasingly points to this tragic incident as having been triggered by mental health issues," he said.
"At this time we believe this was a spontaneous attack and the victims were selected at random."
Police were called to reports of a man attacking people with a knife in Russell Square, near the British Museum in central London - an area visited by many tourists - at about 10.30 p.m. local time Wednesday. Officers arrived at the scene soon afterward and the 19-year-old suspect was tasered and taken to a hospital.
The American woman, believed to be in her 60s, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.
Scotland Yard said the suspect, who has not been named, was treated in the hospital and is now in custody at a police station in south London. He has been arrested on suspicion of murder.
Two women and three men were injured in the attack. One of the victims, who suffered a stab wound to his stomach, remained in the hospital Thursday while the others had been discharged, police said.
Manuel Simo, 32, who works at a hotel in the area, told the London Evening Standard: "At first, people were confused and thought it was a traffic accident. When they realized what was happening people were screaming and running away from a guy who was holding a knife. Apparently he was just stabbing people randomly - it's horrible. People ran away in the direction of the British Museum."
Scotland Yard's homicide and major crime team is leading the investigation, supported by counter-terrorism officers.
The stabbings came as Scotland Yard announced 600 extra firearms officers to patrol the streets of London in a bid to protect residents from the threat of terrorism, following a spate of recent attacks in Europe, including one in Nice, France, that killed 84 people.
A subway train traveling between King's Cross and Russell Square was targeted by a suicide bomber in the terror attacks on the London transport system of July 2005, and a bomb was detonated on a double-decker bus in nearby Tavistock Square. The series of attacks killed 52 people.
"As a precautionary measure, Londoners will wake up this morning to notice an increased presence on the streets of officers, including armed officers today," Rowley said in a statement earlier Thursday.
Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, urged Londoners to "remain calm and vigilant."
"The safety of all Londoners is my number one priority and my heart goes out to the victims of the incident in Russell Square and their loved ones," he said in a statement Thursday.
