A Chinese court on Friday (Dec 27) sentenced a man to death for killing 35 people last month by driving into a crowd in Zhuhai. The man who committed the heinous crime has been identified as Fan Weiqiu. He was venting his anger over his divorce settlement.

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Labelling the motive behind the attack "extremely despicable," the court said: The "criminal motive was extremely despicable, the nature of the crime was extremely vile, the means of the crime were particularly cruel, and the consequences of the crime were particularly severe, resulting in great social harm".

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What happened?

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On November 11, Weiqiu rammed his car into the crowds on a running track. Driving at high speed due to his dissatisfaction about how his property was divided after his divorce, the 62-year-old killed 35 people and injured dozens more.

He "decided to vent his anger" over "a broken marriage, personal frustrations, and dissatisfaction with the division of property after divorce".

The senseless attack is thought to be the deadliest on Chinese soil since 2014.

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A witness told the court that the man drove his car in a "loop" driving over, leaving people injured in "all areas of the running track" where people were exercising.

Following the attack, Fan Weiqiu was found in his vehicle trying to stab himself with a knife, said the police. He pleaded guilty to endangering public safety by dangerous means. According to Chinese media reports, he admitted his guilt in front of the victim's families.

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A symptom?

The attack raised national concern about mass killing, but it is far from the only such attack this year. Fan Weiqiu's crime as per reports is only one of the 19 such attacks in China, which this year targeted strangers.

In February, 21 people were killed in a mass stabbing and firearms attack in Shandong. In total, around 63 people have been killed and 166 injured in these attacks. In 2023, 16 were killed in such attacks and 40 were injured.

(With inputs from agencies)