On Oct. 31, a 24-year-old man went on a stabbing rampage and set fire to a train in the Tokyo subway. Multiple people were injured, with one in critical condition. This marks the second stabbing on a Tokyo train in two months.
The suspect was arrested on-site. He was dressed up in a Joker costume and was seen smoking a cigarette before he committed the crimes. Police stated that the suspect said he “wanted to kill people so he could get sentenced to death.” The suspect stated that he used an earlier example of a stabbing as inspiration for his own.
The suspect took a knife and started to slash passengers. Then he poured a liquid around the train, which many witnesses thought looked like oil. The suspect then lit the train on fire, causing many to flee to other carriages, with some even jumping out of train windows.
In total, 17 people were injured, with three in critical condition. A man believed to be in his 60s was found unconscious and seriously injured. Many of the other injuries were minor.
The attack happened on the Keio line train near the Kokuryo Station, a western suburb of Tokyo. Videos show emergency officials rushing to rescue people from the burning train.
There has been an increasing number of knife attacks in Japan, even though attacks with guns are low in Japan. This was the second stabbing on a Tokyo train line in two months. In August, a day before the Olympic closing ceremonies, a 36-year old man stabbed 10 people on a commuter train.