A court in China A man has been sentenced to death for killing 35 people last month. Driving in a crowdIn an attack that sparked national concern about mass casualties.
Fan Weiqiu was venting his anger because he was unhappy with his divorce settlement, a court in the southern city of Zhuhai said in sentencing Friday. The victims were exercising at a sports center. A court statement said Fein pleaded guilty to endangering public safety by dangerous means.
Fan's “criminal motive was extremely despicable, the nature of the crime was extremely heinous, the means of the crime were particularly cruel, and the consequences of the crime were particularly severe, resulting in enormous social harm,” the court said. .
The attack was one of several in China in late October and November and prompted Chinese leader Xi Jinping to order local governments to take measures to prevent “extreme cases” in the future. . His order committed local leaders to examining personal conflicts that could spark aggression, from marital problems to disputes over inheritance.
Fan's sentencing was the second in a row in the weeks following the recent attacks, which is much quicker than court cases are usually in China.
A court earlier this week gave a two-year suspended death sentence to a driver who plowed into elementary school students and parents in Hunan province, injuring 30 people. Such sentences are usually commuted to life imprisonment.
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The Changde city court said the driver was venting his frustration after losing his investment money.
Such car or knife attacks on crowds are nothing new in China, but this fall has accelerated and the death toll in the Zhuhai attack has increased. Numbers have focused on this issue. Attackers often take out their anger and frustration on a personal matter known as “revenge against society” crimes.
Chinese authorities tightly cover any reports of attacks, censoring videos and eyewitness accounts posted on social media and releasing only basic information, often hours later.
The death toll in Zhuhai was not announced until 24 hours after the attack. Police said that apart from the 35 people killed, 43 others were injured. A police statement said the driver, Fan, aged 62, was trying to commit a knife attack in his car.
The day after the attack, police erected barricades and prevented people from entering the sports complex. Members of the public instead left bouquets of flowers from the adjacent square.
–Associated Press researcher Yu Bing contributed to this report.
and copy 2024 Canadian Press