M'sian Teen Sentenced To Life For Attacking Roommates In UK Boarding School With Hammers
The 17-year-old told the court that he had collected weapons in preparation for a zombie apocalypse.
By May Vin Ang — 04 Nov 2024, 04:35 PM
A schoolboy who attacked two students and a teacher with multiple hammers at a boarding school in Devon, England last year has been named after an order preventing his identification was recently lifted
The 17-year-old has been identified as Thomas Wei Huang, from Malaysia, who was sentenced to life on 18 October, with a minimum term of 12 years, for the attempted murder of three individuals at Blundell's School in Tiverton.
In the early hours of 9 June 2023, the teenager, who was aged 16 at the time, had waited for his two roommates to fall asleep before attacking them with three claw hammers.
Huang had also struck housemaster Henry Roffe-Silvester six times on the head after the teacher entered the room to investigate the source of the commotion.
According to The Guardian, the judge lifted the restrictions on reporting Huang's name, which had initially been imposed due to his age.
Last year, the court heard that Huang used the weapons that he had collected in preparation for a zombie apocalypse
Huang told the jury that he kept a hammer under his pillow and another on beside of his bed, next to where he stored snacks in case of an apocalypse.
The jury also heard he had an "unhealthy interest in violence and violent films", and was struggling with a "cocktail of extreme stress" stemming from exam pressure and personal life issues, reported BBC News.
Although he admitted to assaulting the two boys and the teacher, Huang pleaded not guilty to the three counts of attempted murder, claiming that he was sleepwalking during the attack
However, the jury rejected his argument.
During sentencing, Judge Justice Cutts said, "You knew the difference between right and wrong and you intended to kill those boys."
Both victims sustained skull fractures and injuries to their ribs, spleen, and lungs, with one suffering permanent brain damage. Both victims have no memory of the attack.
