On a train filled with passengers headed to a Halloween gathering in Tokyo, a man dressed in Batman's Joker costume on Sunday stabbed several passengers before setting a fire, police said. NHK public television said at least 10 passengers were injured, including one seriously. The attacker, only identified as a man in his 20s, was arrested on the spot and is being investigated, NHK said.
As per news agency Reuters, a man in his 60s was left unconscious and in a critical condition after being stabbed, while witnesses also said the attacker had spread fluid around the train and started a fire, according to media.
Tokyo police officials said the attack happened inside the Keio train near the Kokuryo station. The attacker’s motive was not immediately known.
Television footage showed a number of firefighters, police officials and paramedics rescuing the passengers, many of whom escaped through train windows.
Shunsuke Kimura, who filmed the video, told NHK that he saw passengers desperately running and while he was trying to figure out what happened, he heard an explosive noise and saw smoke wafting.
The attack was the second involving a knife on a Tokyo train in two months.
In August, the day before the Tokyo Olympics closing ceremony, a 36-year-old man stabbed 10 passengers on a commuter train in Tokyo in a random burst of violence. The suspect later told police that he wanted to attack women who looked happy.
(Agency inputs)
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