PARENTS are terrified fearing a ‘killer’ maniac in a balaclava mask is stalking schoolchildren in a sleepy town.
He leapt out of a car and punched three children going to school in Beccles, Suffolk.
1The horror happened in BecclesThe horror unfolded outside SET School, a secondary run by the Seckford Education Trust for 600 pupils aged 11 to 16..
Police say it was “not a random attack” and they are linking it to another incident four days earlier.
As they stepped up their hunt for the man today, parents are frightened for the safety of their children.
One mum said “It’s like this maniac is deliberately targeting pupils from the school.
“I’ve got a child there and it’s terrifying to think there is someone on the prowl out there, waiting to harm our children.”
The assault on the three pupils took place around 8.15 am by the Premier Store at Castle Hill on February 2nd.
A man wearing a balaclava jumped out of a car passenger seat and punched them as they cowered in fear.
The school’s headteacher Neil Ketteringham said “Our primary concern is always the safety of our students, so the recent news is very concerning and shocking to us.
“We are going above and beyond to ensure this by having eight to ten staff members monitoring the area before and after school.
“And we have also been working closely with Suffolk Police in their investigations to ensure the perpetrator can be brought to justice.”
A previous incident saw a car drive at a pupil crossing the road near the school, in an apparent bid to run him down which could have killed him.
A police spokesperson said of the attack on the three pupils “It doesn’t appear to be a random assault and our investigations continue.”
Suffolk county councillor Caroline Topping, who lives in the town, said “It is “totally unacceptable that young people, walking to school, should be subject to this sort of behaviour and assault.”
Anyone who can help with the investigations is asked to contact Suffolk Police at 101.
The crime reference for the assault is 37/6485/23 and the crime reference for the January 30 attempted hit-and-run incident is 37/6467/23.
Story Credit: thesun.co.uk