A man killed 35 people and injured 43 more when he plowed his car into those exercising around a sports center in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, local police said Tuesday.
The toll from the Monday incident was a dramatic increase from the initial report, when police only said that people had been injured, with videos apparently scrubbed from social media.
A 62-year-old man with the surname Fan drove a small SUV through a gate and "forced his way into the city's sports center, ramming people who were exercising on the internal roads," police said Tuesday.
Preliminary investigations suggested Fan's attack had been "triggered by (his) dissatisfaction with the division of property following his divorce," their statement said.
Footage from Monday night showed people lying motionless on the ground, while others were seen frantically attempting to resuscitate the unconscious.
An eyewitness with the surname Chen told Chinese news magazine Caixin it was common for groups to take daily walks on the dedicated track around the stadium.
He had just completed his third lap on Monday when a car suddenly sped at them and knocked down "many people," but he was able to jump aside.
Another eyewitness surnamed Liu told Caixin that the car "drove in a loop."
"People were hurt in all areas of the running track — east, south, west and north," he said.
Fan was "controlled on the spot" as he attempted to drive away, police said Tuesday.
He was found in his car cutting himself with a knife, and is currently in a coma after self-inflicted injuries to his neck and other parts of his body, unable to undergo interrogation, they added.
The 43 people wounded are not currently in life-threatening condition, police said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged "all-out efforts" to treat the injured and has "demanded punishing the perpetrator in accordance with the law," according to state news agency Xinhua.
China's largest airshow showcasing Beijing's civil and military aerospace sector is being held in Zhuhai at the moment.
Safety alert
In a safety alert, Japan's embassy in China warned its citizens on Tuesday to be on high alert and "refrain from speaking loudly in Japanese and avoid provocative, attention-drawing behavior such as being loud in groups."
The embassy said it had no information that any Japanese citizens had been wounded in the attack, but noted China has seen a spate of violent public attacks in recent months.
In September, a Japanese schoolboy was fatally stabbed in the neighboring city of Shenzhen, prompting outrage from Tokyo.
A man killed three people and wounded 15 in a knife attack at a supermarket in Shanghai in October.
And in July, police said a vehicle crashed into pedestrians in the central city of Changsha, killing eight.
This prompted an outrage on Chinese social media, where posts complaining about the government's slow response and raising questions about the mental health of a nation shaken by a recent spate of similar killings, were being quickly removed.
'No filming'
There were fewer than 20 people seen at the sports stadium on Tuesday night.
Some were attempting to take videos but were blocked by a police car and security guards shouting "No filming!"
"Zhuhai is supposed to be the safest city, nothing like this has ever happened here in the last decades," one resident said.
A shocked young man said he normally went running around the sports center every night — but hadn't on Monday because he had been tired.
He lamented the media coverage of the incident, saying that in the past, local outlets would have pressed authorities for answers.
At around midnight, cleaners doused out the candles, and workers took away flowers, saying they had been ordered to move them to a different location and that the public could view them tomorrow.
Some of the workers said the decision to move the flowers was an "order from the top."
Videos on social media earlier showed Zhuhai residents queuing up at blood donation centers and hospitals.
Security was high in front of the emergency room of a hospital near the crime scene, with a huge group of doctors seen at work.
Media lockdown
Despite the efforts to clear the site in Zhuhai, which is near Macau, delivery drivers on motorbikes kept dropping off fresh flowers on Wednesday morning, even as authorities erected temporary barriers around the makeshift vigil area and deployed security personnel.
"The authorities hadn’t released any information — some colleagues mentioned it and I couldn’t believe it at first, but it was confirmed later,” said a 50-year-old man who identified himself as Zheng who brought flowers to the site.
"It’s just a spontaneous feeling I had. Even though I don’t know them personally, I had family members who passed away in the past, so I understand that feeling," said Zheng.
Some wreaths carried handwritten notes: "Strangers travel well. May there be no demons in heaven,” read one. On another: "May there be no thugs in heaven. Good will triumph over evil. Rest in peace.”
After initially allowing journalists to briefly speak to the people laying the flowers, a handful of security personnel sporting light blue uniforms and caps told reporters not to talk to the people or to film specific messages on the bouquets.
China’s state broadcaster CCTV did not mention the attack in its 30-minute midday news bulletin. Instead, the program led with President Xi Jinping's departure for the APEC summit in Peru and devoted a portion of the airtime to the airshow.
Other state media,such as China Daily's Chinese language website, also prominently displayed the news of Xi's upcoming visit to Peru. The current affairs part of China Daily's website and the local area page did not mention the incident either.
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