South African boy, 7, stabbed to death by older student in school toilet

A South African boy, believed to be 7-years-old, was stabbed to death in a school's toilet by a teenage student who attends a nearby secondary school.

The teenager accused of stabbing the younger student is in police custody. The teenager is accused of hiding overnight, waiting for the victim in a school's toilet. 

The victim, a grade one pupil, was stabbed multiple times, the authorities said. The suspect was thought to have been in a relationship with the victim's older sister, they added. The young boy may have been targeted after the suspect fell out with his older sister, the local authority said.

The suspect is a student in grade 11, which is usually for 16 and 17-year-olds, who attends a nearby secondary school. The victim was in grade one, usually for six and seven-year-olds.

The police are carrying out further investigations at the primary school in Makapanstad in North West province, BBC reports.

The local education authority said in a statement that the suspect "apparently slept in the toilet overnight without anyone knowing he was there." He then stabbed the victim, who was taken to a local clinic but medics were unable to save his life.