A man who killed dozens when he rammed his car into people exercising outside a stadium in southern China has been sentenced to death.
Van Wyckew was charged with “endangering public safety,” according to a court statement.
At least 35 people were killed and dozens injured in the November 11 attack in Zhuhai, believed to be the deadliest on Chinese soil in a decade.
According to the court, the 62-year-old decided to drive his car through crowds on the running track at high speed because he was “unsatisfied” with how his property was divided after his divorce.
The court described his motives as “extremely despicable” and his “methods” as “particularly cruel”. One witness told news magazine Caixin that he was driving “in circles” leaving the victims “hit in all areas of the running track” – a popular exercise location.
Chinese media reported that Fan – who was initially reported to be in a coma, after sustaining knife wounds – admitted his guilt in front of the victims' families and members of the public.
The attack was one of 19 attacks targeting strangers that occurred across China this year, including two within a week of the Zhuhai attack.
Not all vehicles participated. In February, a mass stabbing and gun attack in Shandong killed at least 21 people. This incident was closely monitored by the Chinese authorities.
In total, at least 63 people were killed and 166 injured in these attacks. This represents a sharp rise compared to previous years, when 16 people were killed and 40 injured in 2023, for example.
Some noted that the increase in random attacks could indicate a general increase in frustration and anger as the economy slows and uncertainty about the future increases.
“These are symptoms of a society with a lot of repressed grievances,” Lynette Ong, a professor of Chinese politics at the University of Toronto in Canada, told AFP news agency in November.
