Beijing Sword Attack: Dramatic Video, Pictures Show Deranged Man After Attack On Strangers In Busy Sanlitun District

A Beijing sword attack left one woman dead and another man injured, and now disturbing pictures and video are emerging of the seemingly random attack.

The incident took place in the city’s busy Sanlitun district, a popular area for tourists. Witnesses say a man, who appeared to be in his 20s, chased a woman toward a Uniqlo store and stabbed her with a long sword. Many people rushed to help the victim, including a man identified as her husband, while the suspect continued on to the busy square.

Pictures from the Beijing sword attack show the woman seemingly unconscious and covered in blood. The man helping her, who was also injured, was identified as a French national. Neither his identity nor the extent of his injuries has been disclosed.

Many of the pictures and videos from the Beijing sword attack made their way online on Thursday, showing the chaotic scene.

Video that appeared on YouTube of the Beijing attack showed a man applying pressure to the woman’s wound while the sword-wielding man stood alone in the now cleared-out square. He appeared to be swaying.

Other pictures showed police surrounding the man, who appeared to be taken into custody without further incident.

Reports within China initially identified the woman stabbed as a foreigner, but later reports claimed she was a Chinese woman.

Shanghaist initially reported that the woman was alive and being treated in a hospital, but later reports claimed that she had died.

The Guardian reported that after the woman was killed, the busy square went back to normal.

“Within 90 minutes of the incident, there was virtually no police presence in the area. Witnesses said they had seen officers scrubbing blood from the pavement. The only hint that an attack had taken place were the onlookers crowding around to take photographs.

…

“Friends of the woman, who is thought to work as a tattoo artist in Beijing, posted messages on social media expressing their shock. Addressing the female victim one wrote: ‘You have to wake up and make me a tattoo, bless, my thought is with you.'”

Police identified the Beijing sword attack suspect as 25-year-old Mr. Gao. They did not disclose a possible motive for the attack.

[Image via Weibo]