People who helped subdue a man who allegedly stabbed and wounded three on a Taichung Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) train on Tuesday morning are to be given free metro rides for life, Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) said yesterday.
Video footage showed several people teaming up to subdue the man, Lu said, adding that an investigation into the incident is ongoing.
The city government would publicly commend those who helped stop the suspect at a public security meeting and pay the medical bills of two hospitalized city residents, she said.
Photo: Courtesy of Taichung City Government
A private medical institution would provide rehabilitation free of charge to the two people who were wounded, who are each to receive compensation of NT$200,000, she said.
At 11:17am on Tuesday, a 20-year-old man surnamed Hung (洪) allegedly attacked people on a train near Taichung City Hall MRT Station, the Taichung Police Department said.
Three people were hurt, with two of them taken to hospital, while the third person sustained only minor injuries and did not need immediate medical attention, police said.
One of the two who were hospitalized is a 27-year-old man surnamed Hsu (許), who wrestled with Hung and was injured, but then worked with other passengers to suppress him and grab the knife, police said.
Hsu in the early hours of yesterday morning wrote on Instagram that he is safe in hospital and is grateful for the messages he received after the incident, including from his friends and many strangers.
He said he is very happy to receive their messages, but cannot reply to each of them, so he wanted to say “thank you for caring about me” to all of them through the post, he wrote.
Hsu said that scammers are using his name to fraudulently seek money to pay for medical fees.
He added that he is not in need of cash, so people should take care where they send their money.
Hung is a Kaohsiung resident who traveled to Taichung on Monday.
After the attack, he was taken to hospital and placed under police surveillance, the department’s Sixth Precinct said in a statement.
Prosecutors on Tuesday inspected the MRT car where the incident happened.
Hung is expected to be charged with attempted murder, the Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office said.
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