A man has been charged with attempted murder after a nine-year-old girl was stabbed in Dorset earlier this week.
The man, a 28-year-old from Christchurch, is accused of stabbing the youngster on Tuesday evening at a home on Gilder Close.
A woman in her 50s was also arrested on suspicion of assisting him but has since been released.
The young girl remains in hospital for non-life threatening injuries and is expected to recover, officers said.
She was initially reported as eight years old by local media.
DCI Aimee Schock said the girl and her family are being supported by specialist officers.
She added: ‘After enquiries carried out by detectives, we liaised with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) who authorised the charges.
‘There will continue to be an increased policing presence in the coming days and we would urge anyone to approach an officer with information or concerns.
‘I would like to thank the community for their ongoing support.’
The man remains in custody and will appear at Poole Magistrate’s Court on August 22.
Gilder Close is a small road in a residential neighbourhood near an industrial estate in east Christchurch, a town about five miles from Bournemouth.
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