Shanghai knife attack kills three, wounds 15 others, Xinhua reports

The victims were immediately rushed to hospital for treatment, according to Xinhua on Oct. 1, but three died. AFP reported that the other 15 did not sustain life-threatening wounds.

The assailant, a 37-year-old man surnamed Lin, was detained by the police who received a report of the incident at 9:47 p.m. local time, Xinhua said.

Police said the man went on the rampage in anger caused by a "personal financial dispute", AFP reported.

An investigation is under way.

Public stabbing incidents have risen over the years in China, with authorities often putting the blame on mental illness. Children at schools are a common target.

In September, a 10-year-old Japanese student was fatally stabbed by an attacker metres from his school in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

That incident along with a June knife attack on two Japanese nationals in Suzhou, a major city in eastern China have stoked security concerns among members of the Japanese community in China.

Stabbing incidents are rare in Shanghai but not unprecedented.

In 2022, a man went on a stabbing spree at a major hospital in the Chinese financial hub, injuring 15 people.

The man, whom authorities said was "resentful of society" after an investment fell through, was sentenced to death a year later.