Image Credit: Lesley Martin/PA Images via Getty Images 
Police in Scotland are facing significant backlash after they reportedly failed to intervene when an alleged migrant wielding massive knives stabbed at least one person near a school and daycare on Monday morning.
The rampage unfolded just after 8 a.m. in the Calder Gardens neighborhood of Edinburgh.
Authorities received reports of a “man with a bladed weapon,” but arriving officers refused to exit their vehicles as the suspect smashed up a local shop, attacked victims, and even attempted to gain entry to a school, witnesses say.
“I got out of my car and the guy came up to me with his hands behind his back. He said: ‘Can I speak to you?‘ He had the two knives behind his back, covered in blood,” one man said.
“He started going towards the school so I was just trying to chase him back. He was coming towards me the whole time.”
A local resident said the knifeman “tried to get into the school, the nursery,” the Mirror reports.
“He (then) went into the shop. He ransacked the shop, the shop’s a mess. He chased the people that work in the shop with a knife.”
Another witness stated, “The man was stood outside the back of the shops. I could see his hands covered in blood. And the knives were drenched in it.”
“Parents from the school were running with their kids into cars. We begged the police to come and help.”
The suspect, a black male of foreign origin, then strolled away and barricaded himself inside “his tax payer funded accommodation” near the top of a high-rise apartment building, according to reports.
🚨 ALERT: Don't Worry, Scotland – It's NOT Terror-Related: Just a Knifeman in Combat Gear Stabbing People Near a School
— Amy Mek (@AmyMek) March 2, 2026
Edinburgh Calder stabbing: "Man" in combat gear roaming with TWO huge knives, smashes local shop, stabs multiple people (at least two in hospital), barricades… pic.twitter.com/ZHow8Lscgj
Videos and photos from the scene show the suspect smiling and leering at bystanders and authorities on the ground.
Hours later, Police Scotland announced an unidentified “man” was arrested “in connection with a disturbance.”
“Two people were injured and taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh for treatment to non life threatening injuries. A man suffered injuries consistent with being stabbed. A woman suffered a laceration to the head, not believed to be caused by a bladed weapon.”
“The incident is not being treated as terror related,” officials said.
Outraged observers ripped Police Scotland on social media, pointing out that some media outlets reported officers had cowered in their vehicles while victims were forced to fend for themselves.
“‘Disturbance’ is a word you’d use if describing a heated dispute over a car-parking space, not an incident that left innocent people fighting for their lives, whilst the perpetrator calmly walks away with a large knife in each blood drenched hand!” one man wrote.
Jane Meagher, head of the Edinburgh City Council, issued a statement reminding the public that Edinburgh “is a proud, welcoming and diverse city. Our biggest strength lies in those who live here – people from all walks of life, cultures, and backgrounds – and we all have a part to play in making sure it stays that way.”
Information about the suspect remains extremely limited at this time.
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