Police have arrested a man who plowed his car into busy pedestrian crossings in Guangzhou, China, killing at least 5 people and injuring 13 others.
The unidentified 22-year-old man drove into a four-way intersection during rush hour at 5:25 p.m. local time on Wednesday before speeding away from the scene in Guangdong province.
Gruesome videos of the incident circulating on social media show the driver in a black BMW plowing through pedestrians in at least two separate crossings in a commercial district.
A terrible accident at a busy crossing in #Guangzhou, #China. Five people were killed and 13 injured when a SUV ran into a crowd. pic.twitter.com/M19sgcgzCB
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) January 11, 2023
In the footage, victims can be seen left lying on the road after they were hit. One woman, who was hit on a street with a single crosswalk, can also be seen being tossed in the air after she was hit by the speeding vehicle.
What a crazy guy #terrorism in #guangzhou pic.twitter.com/RmYNQj4m5x
— Tia Vodinova (@TVodinova) January 11, 2023
“He deliberately drove into the people who were waiting for the traffic light. He rammed the car into them maliciously. After that, he made a U-turn and hit people again,” an eyewitness told local media, according to BBC. “He wasn’t driving too quickly, but some people couldn’t run away in time because they wouldn’t have known he was hitting people deliberately.”
One video shared online reportedly showed the man throwing fistfuls of cash out of the car after stopping on the side of the road.
Local police and medical staff were immediately dispatched to the scene, where they pronounced five people dead.
According to authorities, police have arrested the man and an investigation is underway.
The driver’s motive has not been revealed.
No other details of the man were provided. However, a Twitter user posted a video of a man who they claimed to be the suspect.
“The animal who hit people in Guangzhou,” the user wrote.
广州撞人的畜生😡😡
小朋友才6岁，跟着妈妈出来买新年衣服，遇上这么个畜生😡 pic.twitter.com/YmL2OEIpqR
— 西關小姐姐🇨🇳🇭🇰 (@LM62710) January 11, 2023
The incident has sparked public outrage, with many netizens accusing the man of deliberately killing people.
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