It was a day which brought back chilling memories of one of the most heinous crimes our city has ever seen.
A lone man travelling to one of the busiest and popular venues in Manchester, intent on doing irreparable damage.
Though no-one was killed in the Arndale Centre, the sheer terror of what Raphael Chevelleau subjected shoppers to can not be understated.
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Five people were stabbed. A man in his 50s and four women aged between 19 and 49 were the victims Chevelleau picked out at random.
On a busy Friday morning, one had been pushing a pram with her newborn baby, others were out shopping and another had just finished work.
During two minutes of terrifying chaos, Chevelleau, who had calmly walked into the shopping precinct, suddenly broke into a run and began indiscriminately stabbing people.
And as others realised what was happening they ran for their lives, some desperately seeking shelter in shops.
It was what Chevelleau said when he was being caught at the scene which led police to declare a terrorist incident.
Just like almost 18 months before, when 22 innocent people were murdered at the Manchester Arena, Operation Plato was enforced.
The Operation provides a pre-arranged response for emergency services during a suspected marauding terror attack.
When he was caught, Chevelleau told police he 'wanted to be treated as a terrorist'.
After Chevelleau said he was 'doing this for my people', the spectre of another potential terrorist attack in Manchester was raised further.
"It is political," he told arresting officers.
"I don't like blacks, I don't like whites, I don't like Asians."
Civic leaders including Mayor Andy Burnham, as well as Prime Minister Boris Johnson, told of their shock at what had unfolded.
But it was another statement which gave police further clues as to why Chevelleau had arrived in Manchester city centre, armed with a knife he'd bought from a pound store earlier that morning.
"I was gonna stab my ex-girlfriend, but I couldn't be bothered to travel there, so I took it out on someone in town," he said after being brought to a police station.
Terrorism was later ruled out as the motive.
But coming just one year-and-a-half after the Arena atrocity, it was a sobering reminder of that dark day in Manchester's history.
"All of us recall this Arndale attack over two years ago, and how it brought back relatively raw memories of previous acts of violence on innocent people in our city, especially those of a terrorist nature," said Detective Superintendent Will Chatterton, of Counter Terrorism Policing North West.
"Whilst this incident was not terrorism, it did not diminish the level of fear and anger that people felt that day.
"It reminds us to remain vigilant while we are out and about, and to report anything suspicious to the relevant authorities.
"Thankfully no lives were lost in this attack, but the five victims suffered a range of injuries which were both physical and psychological.
"Many more who were also that day will have been affected."
As the investigation into Chevelleau continued, what emerged was a more complex picture of mental health problems.
Chevelleau, then 41, was known to the police and the courts, having 56 prior offences on his record including the possession of cannabis.
But since his early teens, he was showing signs of suffering from serious mental illness, and was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in his early 20s.
A psychiatrist who regularly appears in the courts said Chevelleau was 'one of the most ill patients' he had ever come across during his career.
At the time of the attack, on October 11, 2019, Chevelleau was living on his own in a flat on Rochdale Road in Blackley.
Despite his diagnosis Chevelleau insisted he was not ill, but was compliant with his medication.
He'd admitted he'd been hearing voices, and had become 'fixated' with a woman called Natalie.
While it is thought she is a real person, it was part of his 'delusional ideas'.
He had not been in a relationship with her, and had not seen her for at least 10 years.
But Chevelleau revealed that after hearing her voice in his mind, he planned to go out and stab her.
A judge said he was satisfied that Chevelleau's plan to stab Natalie, and his subsequent rampage in the Arndale, were 'entirely driven' by his paranoid schizophrenia.
He will remain in Ashworth high security psychiatric hospital indefinitely, to continue treatment.
Chevelleau is not likely to be back on the streets for many years, if ever, as the authorities will have to approve his release.
The outcome of Monday's court hearing may provide some comfort for his victims.
The first was a 59-year-old man who had gone to the Arndale to meet a friend for coffee.
He was stabbed three times, causing heavy blood loss. He was hospitalised but discharged later that day.
A 33-year-old woman was out shopping with her husband when Chevelleau started running at her.
He smiled as he swung the knife towards her stomach.
It was the first time a 43-year-old new mum had been out with her baby.
He struck out at her with 'one blow'.
The fourth victim, 19-year-old woman who had travelled to the city from Ireland for a friend's birthday, was the most seriously hurt.
She suffered a deep wound to her arm and spent four days in hospital, having been deciding on drinks at Starbucks just moments earlier.
A 49-year-old woman who had just finished a shift in a shop at the Arndale thought she was going to die.
Chevelleau stabbed her to the back, but the layers of clothing she was wearing saved her from more serious injury.
While his knife rampage came 'out of the blue' and was ultimately not linked to terrorism, Chevelleau's actions will live long in the memories of those caught up in it.
"When he entered the Manchester Arndale just after 11am, the shopping centre was busy with shoppers, young children, and babies in prams," Det Supt Chatterton said.
"Regardless of this, he began his indiscriminate attacks with no warning or provocation, slashing and stabbing a total of five completely innocent victims.
"The scene was one of sheer terror, as the victims and other shoppers ran and hid in an effort to escape.
"Many ran for their lives, as the injured feared they were going to lose theirs."
Chevelleau pleaded guilty to three section 18 assaults and two attempted section 18 assaults, and was sentenced to be detained indefinitely under the Mental Health Act.
