The three victims of the Nottingham stabbing rampage were identified on Wednesday, including two students who had recently finished their exams.
Grace O’Malley-Kumar and Barnaby Philip John Webber were both 19-year-old students at the University of Nottingham when they were stabbed to death at 4 a.m. on Tuesday morning.
O’Malley-Kumar was studying medicine, while Webber was a history student. A student told The Independent that the pair was headed back from a club after celebrating the end of their exams.
Authorities have arrested a 31-year-old suspect whose name has not been released. The man killed the third victim of the attacks, a 65-year-old man named Ian Coates, over a mile away. Coates was commuting to work before he was carjacked and stabbed.
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The suspect hurt three others in a hit-and-run after stealing Coates' van. Nottinghamshire Police said on Wednesday that a man who matched the suspect's appearance attempted to enter a care home, but did not succeed.
Webber, who was from the southwestern town of Taunton, was described as a "beautiful, brilliant, bright young man" by his family.
"A talented and passionate cricketer, who was over the moon to have made selection to his university cricket team," a family statement read. "Complete devastation is not enough to describe our pain and loss at the senseless murder of our son."
O’Malley-Kumar, a fellow cricketer, also played field hockey for England youth teams. Her brother and parents said she was a "truly wonderful and beautiful young lady" in a statement.
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"Words cannot explain our complete and utter devastation. She will be so dearly missed," the family said. "We were so incredibly proud of Grace’s achievements and what a truly lovely person she was."
The other deceased victim of the attacks, Ian Coates, was a popular employee at a Nottingham elementary school.
"He used to take underprivileged kids fishing just to get away from crime. You genuinely couldn’t find a nicer guy," his son Lee Coates said. The grieving son wore a shirt saying "Dad, love you always and forever."
Police apprehended the suspect with a stun gun. Officials are still working with counterterrorism experts to determine a motive.
According to the BBC, the suspect was a West African who lived legally in Britain and did not have any criminal history.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
