Woman killed, 12 hurt in knife attack at Beijing shopping mall; police detain suspect
Man carried out attack because of ‘personal grievance’, police say
A woman was killed and a dozen people were injured in a knife attack at a busy shopping mall in Beijing on Sunday, amid tighter security ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.
The woman died in hospital after emergency treatment, the Beijing Public Security Bureau said in a statement. Three men and nine women were still being treated in hospital, none of them for life-threatening injuries.
A 35-year-old suspect from Henan province, identified only by his surname Zhu, was arrested at the scene and has been detained. Police said the man had carried out the attack because of a “personal grievance”, without elaborating.
The attack took place at the Joy City Mall in Xidan – one of the Chinese capital’s busiest shopping areas located about 2.5km (1.5 miles) from Tiananmen Square – at around 1pm.
No further details were given, but by late afternoon, all shops and restaurants at the mall were open as usual except for The Dining Room on the fourth floor which had been sealed off, its windows covered in blue tarpaulins and a police officer standing guard at the entrance.