A Chinese man who injured a Japanese mother and her child and killed a Chinese bus attendant trying to protect them in a knife attack near Shanghai last June has been sentenced to death, according to a Japanese government official.
A court in the city of Suzhou said Zhou Jiasheng, 52, stabbed the three because he was indebted and did not want to live any longer, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo on Thursday.
The case was one of two stabbing attacks on Japanese children in China last year that raised concerns about increased anti-Japanese sentiment in the country. Tokyo asked Beijing to ensure the safety of its citizens in China.
Hayashi said the court ruling, which was not immediately available, made no reference to Japan.
“We believe the crime that killed and injured the innocent people including a child was absolutely unforgivable, and we take the ruling seriously,” Hayashi said.
He said officials from the Japanese Consulate in Shanghai were present at the court sentencing.
The stabbing occurred at a bus stop for a Japanese school in Suzhou on June 24. A female bus attendant, Hu Youping, who tried to stop the attack died of stab wounds days later. The Japanese mother and child were not seriously injured.
In September, a 10-year-old Japanese student died after being stabbed near his school in the southern city of Shenzhen.
Other stabbing attacks involving foreigners last year were isolated incidents, the Chinese government said.
In June, a Chinese man stabbed four U.S. university instructors at a public park in Jilin in the northeast as well as a Chinese person who tried to intervene.
In May, a knife attack at a hospital in southwestern China killed two people and injured 21 others.
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11 Comments
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Agent_Neo
Despite the investigation by the Chinese authorities, the culprit was executed without any clear motive. They should clarify why they targeted Japanese people. Now I can go to China with peace of mind... No way.
theFu
Bet they used a death van to carry out his sentence already. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Execution_van I'm not making this up.
Fighto!
Excellent news to wake up to. This animal deserves no less than execution.
Rest in Peace to the hero bus attendant.
Meiyouwenti
A bullet in the back of the head is the normal way of execution in China. Some provinces use lethal injection these days.
Jacobo
It was the right court decision.
happyhere
@Agent-neo
There was a motive given: the culprit was indebted and wanted to die. Executing him grants his wish, hardly a deterrent for people with similar motives.
A life sentence in a harsh prison is a much better punishment... and better deterrent.
WoodyLee
""A Chinese man who injured a Japanese mother and her child and killed a Chinese bus attendant trying to protect them in a knife attack near Shanghai last June has been sentenced to death, according to a Japanese government official.""
And this is how you handle it Folks .
Speed
I'm all for the death penalty for these kinds of blatant random murders.
Thanks theFu for that pleasant link to the "death vans" article. I learned something today.
WA4TKG
I prefer Japan’s method: “Hang ‘em High”
grc
hapoythere - you sound as though you are against the death penalty. You are in a minority in Japan
OssanAmerica
Any kind of crime that involves any other country, unless carried out under the CCP's plans and intentions, is treated very harshly.
In this instance, a person who was indebted and no longer wanted to live and chose to kill 2 innocent people as a solution, most likely should be put to death and removed entirely from society.