Death toll in Hunan car rampage rises to 11, dozens hurt

Authorities said the death toll from a car rampage at a square in Central China’s Hunan Province has risen to 11, with 44 others hurt.

Investigators said the suspect Yang Zanyun intentionally drove his car into a crowd Wednesday evening along a square in Hengdong county, Hengyang city. He then attacked people using a dagger and a shovel, the Sina Weibo account of the Hengyang government internet information office said on Thursday.

As of Thursday, 11 people had died and 44 remained in a hospital, the office said.

Authorities have appealed for blood donations and listed seven donation points around the city.

The office said Yang sought revenge on society after being sentenced to prison several times for drug dealing, theft, and intentionally harming others, citing initial police findings.

Local police is investigating the case and local authorities are handling the aftermath, the office said.

Born in 1964 in Hengdong, Yang was diagnosed with gastric cancer and coronary heart disease, according to a verdict against Yang posted online in March.

Yang was sentenced to 18 months in prison in January 2018. He was supposed to have been released on February 28, 2019, the verdict said.

The sentence was revised at a second trial to six months in jail, which started on August 31, 2017, the procuratorate told news outlet btime.com.

When reached by the Global Times to confirm the statement, an anonymous procuratorate official declined to comment.

Two students of Hengyang-based University of South China on Thursday donate blood at a blood donation station at Xiangzheng district, Hengyang, Central China’s Hunan Province. Wednesday’s car rampage in the city killed 11 people and injured 44 others. Dozens of universities donated blood as of Thursday afternoon.