China Executes Man for Deadly Car Attack that Killed Dozens
Fan Weiqiu Executed for Deadly Car Rampage in Zhuhai, While Xu Jiajin Faces Death for University Stabbings
- China has executed a man convicted of killing at least 35 people in a car attack
- Fan Weiqiu, 62, drove his car into a crowd of people exercising outside a stadium in Zhuhai
- He was sentenced to death on December 17, with the court citing the "particularly bad" and "extremely serious" nature of his crime.
China has executed a man convicted of killing at least 35 people in a car attack in November, marking what is believed to be the deadliest assault in the country in a decade.
Fan Weiqiu, 62, drove his car into a crowd of people exercising outside a stadium in Zhuhai, a city in southern China, also injuring dozens more in the process.
State media reports indicate that a second man, Xu Jiajin, 21, was also executed for a separate attack in which he killed eight people in a stabbing spree at his university in Wuxi, located in eastern China.
Authorities said Fan’s motive was rooted in “dissatisfaction” over the division of his property following a divorce, while Xu reportedly carried out his attack after failing to obtain his university diploma due to poor exam results.
Fan was apprehended at the scene on November 11, where police found him with self-inflicted wounds. In December, he was convicted of “endangering public safety” by the Zhuhai Intermediate People’s Court, which described his actions as “extremely vile” and his methods as “particularly cruel.” His execution on Monday came less than a month after his death sentence was handed down.
In Xu’s case, police reported that he confessed to his crime without hesitation on November 16.
He was sentenced to death on December 17, with the court citing the “particularly bad” and “extremely serious” nature of his crime.
Human rights organizations consider China the world’s leading executioner, with thousands of people believed to be executed each year. However, due to the country’s lack of transparency on the death penalty, exact figures remain unavailable.