A 24-year-old man stabbed passengers in the Tokyo subway on Halloween and set a fire. He could still be arrested at the scene.
Tokyo – The alleged knife stabber in Japan disguised as a “Joker” is said to have hoped for the death penalty from his bloody attack on a train.
He had “wanted to kill people and receive the death penalty,” said the 24-year-old to the police after his arrest, as Japanese media reported on Monday. On Halloween night, a man on a train in Tokyo stabbed passengers with a knife and set a fire with liquid fuel. “Joker” is the famous villain from the “Batman” films.
A total of 17 people were injured in the incident, including an elderly man seriously. He is said to have been stabbed in the chest by the perpetrator and was in critical condition. Pictures and videos on social media that eyewitnesses took with their smartphones showed a man at the scene in a purple suit with a green shirt.
Two hours before the knife and fire attack on a train on the Keio line, the perpetrator is said to have been in Tokyo’s trendy Shibuya district, where many people celebrate Halloween in costumes. The alleged attacker was arrested Sunday night (local time) at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder. He is said to have testified that he deliberately chose an express train for his act, since such trains stop less and are usually overcrowded with passengers. He is said to have regretted investigators that he could not kill anyone in his attack, it said. dpa
