11-year-old girl randomly stabbed eight times by stranger in London was a tourist visiting from Australia

A young girl brutally attacked by a knife-wielding maniac in the middle of bustling London on Monday was a tourist visiting with her family from Australia, according to reports.

The girl, aged just 11, was grabbed at random by suspected madman Ioan Pintaru as she walked with her 34-year-old mother in London’s tourist hotspot Leicester Square in broad daylight at around 11.30am.

After abducting the girl, Pintaru, 32, allegedly strangled her and began to plunge a steak knife into her body, stabbing her eight times before a security guard from a nearby store tackled him to the ground and snatched the bloody blade from his hands.

The girl was rushed to hospital with injuries to her neck, wrists, shoulders and face, which required plastic surgery, according to the BBC.

She has since been released and is expected to recover.

Pintaru, a Romanian national, was arrested and charged with attempted murder.

Investigators have not yet determined the motivation for the random attack. It does not appear to have any connection to terrorism.

The stabbing also does not appear to be linked to the wave of violence that has hit London in recent weeks following the fatal stabbing of three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class near Liverpool in July.

The incident sparked chaotic riots, fueled by false rumours that the killer was a young Muslim migrant. The motive for the attack also remains unknown.

Leicester Square sees around 2.5 million people pass through it every week, many of them tourists.

Pinartu, who has no address according to authorities, remains in custody. He is due to appear in court again on September 10.