the essential
In November, in China, a man killed 35 people following a car ramming attack. According to state television CCTV, he was sentenced to the death penalty on Friday, December 27.
It was the worst attack in the country in 10 years. Last November, a man killed 35 people following a car ramming attack in China, in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong. On Friday December 27, he was sentenced to the death penalty.
Fan Weiqiu, 62, was convicted of committing this act which “endangered public security” for personal reasons “in an extremely despicable manner”, according to the court cited by CCTV. On November 11, Fan Weiqiu deliberately drove his SUV into people exercising in front of a sports complex in Zhuhai.
“Extremely despicable” motivations
He was arrested at the scene after inflicting knife wounds on himself and falling into a coma, police said at the time. However, he was tried publicly on Friday in the presence of relatives of the victims, and pleaded guilty, according to the same source. The verdict was announced the same day. The court highlighted the motivations as “extremely despicable, the nature of the crime particularly egregious, the method particularly cruel, and the consequences particularly serious, inflicting significant harm on society”, according to CCTV.
Fan Weiqiu “decided to express his anger” for “a broken marriage, personal frustrations, and his dissatisfaction about the division of property after the divorce”, according to the same source. China has experienced a number of deadly incidents this year – from stabbing attacks to car ramming attacks – which have contrasted with its reputation for good public security. Some experts have linked these incidents to the slowdown in the Chinese economy.
