The man suspected of fatally stabbing 65 people in what is believed to be the worst mass murder case in recent Chinese history was an introverted but outstanding high school student who ran away from his impoverished home in Henan province about 20 years ago.
He was also picked up several times by police for visiting prostitutes but released each time after paying a fine, a newspaper reported.
Yang Xinhai, who goes by the alias Yang Zhiya and is also accused of 23 rapes, was one of the best students in his class and almost managed to finish high school - a rare achievement for poor rural residents - his father, Yang Junguan, told the Beijing News.
State media said Yang, 38, had 'harboured deep anger about society' when he began a killing spree in Henan, Anhui, Hebei and Shandong provinces in 2001 after he was dumped by his girlfriend.
The Beijing News report quoted police as saying that during the two-year killing spree, Yang was picked up by police several times for visiting prostitutes but was let go after paying fines.
His father described him as 'quiet, with very few words and not naughty at all'. Yang's sister, Yang Xinai, said he was so clever that he picked up writing although he had never been taught how to do it.