On a bright August morning in 2024, the bustling heart of London’s Leicester Square was suddenly transformed by a scene of horror and heroism. Amid the usual swirl of tourists and shoppers, 11-year-old Australian girl—on holiday with her mother—was violently attacked by a lone knifeman. What followed would not only save a young life but also shine a spotlight on the courage and humanity of an everyday Londoner.
Abdullah Tanoli, then a 30-year-old security guard at a shop near the square, was going about his routine when, at around 11:30 am, he heard piercing screams from outside. “Not normal screaming,” he later told BBC. “You know when a child is just crying, but when someone is being hurt, that scream is different.” In that instant, his instincts kicked in. He rushed out and saw what no one ever wants to see: a girl in a headlock, being stabbed repeatedly by a man wielding a large kitchen knife.
The attacker, identified as 33-year-old Ioan Pintaru, a Romanian national, had pounced on the girl as she left the Lego store with her mother. He stabbed her eight times in the face, neck, and chest, his arm moving “like a jackhammer,” as described in court testimony cited by The Independent. The girl’s mother would later recall to police that Pintaru had a “crazed and vacant expression,” and that she believed “he was trying to kill” her daughter.
For Abdullah, there was no time to think about his own safety. “At that moment, the only thing in my mind was to save the child,” he told BBC. Despite having no specialist training for knife attacks, he charged toward Pintaru. “I jumped on him. I grabbed the hand with the knife, twisted it, and we went to the floor.” With the help of two other men who rushed in, Abdullah managed to force the knife free, kick it away, and pin the attacker down. For about five agonizing minutes—“which felt like a lifetime,” Abdullah said—he kept Pintaru restrained until the police arrived.
Meanwhile, a nurse who happened to be passing by administered first aid to the wounded girl, helping to stem the bleeding. The quick actions of Abdullah and the nurse were later credited by police and prosecutors as crucial to the girl’s survival. “Without them, she might not be alive today,” Detective Constable Laura Nicoll of the Met’s specialist crime team told the Press Association.
The aftermath of the attack was sobering. The victim, who cannot be named for legal reasons, suffered severe injuries: wounds mere centimeters from her eye, two scars on her cheek, and multiple stabs to her neck, shoulder, and chest—some perilously close to vital arteries and her windpipe. During a police interview, the girl described feeling “something crash into her from behind and hit her on the head,” and said that, in that moment, she thought she was going to die. “She felt the defendant stab her in the face and felt the blood from the wound running down her face. She was understandably terrified,” prosecutor Heidi Stonecliffe KC told the Old Bailey, as reported by Daily Mail.
As the city reeled from the brutality of the attack, it also rallied around its heroes. Judge Richard Marks KC, presiding over the sentencing at the Old Bailey, commended Abdullah’s extraordinary bravery and ordered a £1,000 reward from public funds. Abdullah’s employers promoted him into management, and he received awards for bravery and public recognition across the United Kingdom. “When people call him a hero, he admits it feels good, not out of ego, but because his actions were acknowledged,” BBC reported.
For Abdullah, the events of that day have left an indelible mark. He remains humble, brushing aside the hero label. “I did not know the child. I did not know her religion, her race. I did not know the attacker,” he said. “The only thing was humanity. When one human is in danger, you have to save them.” He also acknowledged the risks. “Yes, I could see it. I could have been killed.” But, he added, “Most people stayed back, and that is understandable—safety first—but if you know you can save someone, you should.”
In the weeks following the attack, a bond was forged between the rescuer and the rescued. A week after the incident, the girl’s mother reached out to Abdullah on social media, expressing the family’s gratitude and saying, “We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We do not want to go to the media. We want to thank you personally.” The families have stayed in touch, sharing messages and photographs. Abdullah now considers the girl “like my younger sister,” and he is relieved by her recovery. “If you see her now,” he told BBC, “she looks normal. I am very relieved.”
Yet, the psychological wounds linger. The girl, now 13, has physically recovered after surgery, but “invisible scars” remain. “The psychological effects of this incident will remain with (her) for the rest of her life,” prosecutor Heidi Stonecliffe KC told the court. The trauma of the attack is something the family continues to grapple with, even as they try to move forward.
As for the attacker, Ioan Pintaru pleaded guilty to possession of a knife and wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm. Psychiatrists testified that he suffered from psychosis during the attack and had previously been admitted to psychiatric hospital in Romania, according to Daily Mail. He had stopped taking his medication prior to the incident. On December 16, 2025, Judge Marks sentenced Pintaru to indefinite detention in a high-security mental hospital under a hospital order (Section 37 of the Mental Health Act) and a restriction order (Section 41). “I respect the law,” Abdullah commented. “Judges know what they are doing. Whatever the sentence is, I will respect it. Actions have consequences. Justice will be served.”
Returning to Leicester Square brings back memories—both haunting and affirming—for Abdullah. “People know me there,” he said. “But every time I go back, it takes me to that day.” He remains deeply grateful for the support he’s received from the community and the country he now calls home. “I chose this country. I came here as a student. I did my master’s degree. I stayed on a work visa. And now the people here, they have supported me. They sent letters, gifts. They invited me to places. I am really happy I chose the UK.”
In a city too often in the news for tragedy, Abdullah Tanoli’s story stands as a reminder of the power of selfless action—of the difference one person can make, even in the darkest moments.
