BMW driver shot dead by police after stealing cars and taking toddlers hostage
Highway attacker goes on a tailspin, stealing two cars and crashing them, before abducting kids
An attacker who stabbed a truck driver and snatched two children onboard as hostages was shot down by police after an hours-long manhunt.
The knife-wielding suspect, identified as a 33-year-old surnamed Yan, had crashed his car then tried to flee in a series of vehicles before taking the truck by force, according to Shandong news portal iQilu.com.
Police went looking for him after receiving reports that a truck with an Anhui licence plate was held up at a local highway at 12.13am.
When authorities tracked him down at around 5.40am, Yan threatened to stab the children so officers had little choice but to shoot him. The four-year-old boy and six-year-old girl were rescued unharmed.
Yan had a criminal record of assault and disturbing the peace.
According to Qilu, the suspect, driving a red BMW, crashed into a Volkswagen Jetta. When the suspect realised he could no longer drive the BMW, he stole the Jetta and wounded its owner.
While fleeing the scene, the Jetta collided with a van. The suspect abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot, until he reached the nearest service area. That was where he saw the Anhui truck.
Last month, a man with a kitchen knife attacked children at a primary school in Hubei Province.
Last September, police in Henan province rescued 92 abducted children held by a suspected trafficking ring. The children were reportedly stolen from their parents and drugged with sleeping pills and sedatives before being sold to traffickers in Henan, Shandong or Hebei for about 20,000 yuan (HK$25,100) each.
They arrested 301 people in connection with the crime.
