Leicester attacks: Carlos Racitalal found guilty of four counts of attempted murder

A man who carried out a string of random attacks, including the stabbing of a 10-year-old boy, has been found guilty of four counts of attempted murder.

Carlos Vinodchandra Racitalal, 33, was convicted of the offences on Thursday (5) following a nine-day trial at Leicester Crown Court.

By the end of his spree on 18 January, he had also targeted a mother and her two young children and a lone shopper.

He will be sentenced at Leicester Crown Court on Friday(6).

Racitalal began his "calculated and deliberate" campaign by driving into a five-year-old girl in a car park on 2 January.

On 14 January, he attacked a woman as she walked home with her children, aged six and three, and stabbed her in the back of the head.

Next day he targeted a man who was on his way home after a shopping trip. On 18 January, he stabbed a 10-year-old boy.

He was arrested two days later when he handed himself in at a police station after CCTV of the attacks was released on social media.

While responding to the news, Claudia Webbe, MP for Leicester East, said that these incidents brought shock and fear to the communities of Belgrave and Leicester East.

“Today’s ruling is an important delivery of justice, and a demonstration that we can never accept violence or hate on the streets of Leicester. My thoughts remain with the victims, their families and their loved ones. It is a miracle that nobody died from these unspeakable attacks," she said.

“Knife and violent crime continues to rise, in Leicester and across the UK. Going forward, the government must declare knife crime an epidemic. Crime thrives amid poverty and lack of opportunity, and we need serious investment, including increased support for mental health, in every community to stem the growth of and stop knife crime.”

The family of the boy said they do not want "anyone to ever go through what we have".

"Seeing our young child being attacked on that horrific day was like living a nightmare for us. We have watched our boy suffering unimaginable pain and the events of that day still remain with us now and still scare us," they said in a statement.

In 2019, Leicestershire had its highest rate of knife crime in a decade, with 869 serious crimes that involved knives-up by 5 per cent from the previous year.