Police on Friday detained a sophomore enrolled in one of Greater Kaohsiung’s top high schools after he allegedly tried to murder of parents.
Sanmin Second Precinct deputy captain Lee Chin-lung (李金龍) said the suspect, surnamed Chang (張), stabbed his 45-year-old mother repeatedly at about 6:30am on Friday, adding that Chang’s father subdued him after rushing into the living room, but also suffered severe wounds to his back, right abdomen and right leg.
Chang’s 14-year-old sister, who reportedly witnessed the attack, called the police, Lee said.
Photo: Tsao Ming-cheng, Taipei Times
The mother was sent to -Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital after receiving multiple stab wounds to the face, head, right breast and left arm, Lee said. She was in critical condition after undergoing emergency surgery.
Lee said Chang was still being subdued by his father when police arrived on the scene.
Lee said the forensics team that searched Chang’s bedroom found a penknife, a small scythe, a knife used to cut fruit and a knife with a serrated edge, as well as coal, tinder, hydrochloric and nitric acid, a bottle of gas and a bundle of black plastic bags.
Investigators also found a -Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital prescription medicine bag for flunitrazepam, more commonly known as Rohypnol or FM2, dated July 27, Lee said.
An A4-size notebook with a black cover was found containing not only Chang’s diaries, but also 40 pages detailing plans to murder his parents, Lee said.
Police said Chang’s father said he found the notebook in either May or June, and took his son to Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital’s psychology ward, but added that his son’s situation did not improve.
The father was quoted by police as saying that he suspected his son threw the pills away.
Lee said Chang and his father were sent to Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, where Chang was diagnosed with acute psychosis with a tendency for self-mutilation and a propensity for violence.
In accordance with the Mental Health Act (精神衛生法), Chang will be hospitalized and kept under observation, Lee said.
Commenting on the case, the director of the psychiatry department at Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Lu Ti (陸悌), said prosecutors should immediately conduct a psychiatric assessment of Chang, -adding the assessment would have a high degree of accuracy and would prevent future events.
It is possible that Chang’s relationship with his family was strained or that Chang was under too much pressure to do schoolwork, causing a pseudo--schizophrenic disorder, delusional disorder or manic-depressive psychosis, Lu said, adding that these psychological disorders tend to -occur during one’s teenage years.
Teenagers often suffer high pressure from homework or peer relations, and long-term suppression of depression can lead to severe schizophrenic or delusional disorders, Lu said, adding that these conditions can lead to auditory and perceptive hallucinations in the patient, who might then target those closest to them as an imagined enemy.
TRANSLATED BY JAKE CHUNG, STAFF WRITER
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