A Taiwanese man allegedly suffering from psychological problems stabbed a US student and a Singaporean businessman in front of National Taiwan University (NTU) yesterday. The pair were hospitalized in stable condition, police said.
Taipei Police Department's Ta-an Precinct said 23-year-old Chan Chiao-wei (
After stabbing two men, Chan hailed a cab and went to the Hsiushan Police Station in Zhonghe City, where he turned himself in, police said.
A police officer at the station said Chan entered the station carrying a knife and said, "I just stabbed somebody at NTU. This is the knife."
Police said Chan could not give a coherent explanation for his actions and they think he might be suffering from psychological problems.
One of the victims was identified as Michael John Toy, 21, a student at National Taiwan Normal University's Mandarin Training Center (MTC), who has been in Taiwan since August.
The school said Toy was stabbed in the right arm and underwent surgery at the Tri-Service General Hospital. He should be able to leave the hospital within two to three days, the school said.
Pan Sung-jung (潘松榮), a 51-year-old businessman from Singapore, sustained severe injuries to his left arm.
A report aired by CTI cable TV quoted a female student as saying she had avoided being attacked by falling to the ground.
"He [Chan] walked toward me. I was scared and I fell so he would attack others," she said.
Lawrence Walker, acting spokesman for the American Institute in Taipei (AIT), said the institute could not comment on the attack because of privacy laws.
AIT would help Toy contact his family once it received permission from him to do so, he said.
Chan was released last night on NT$50,000 bail.
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