A foreign national who injured six people in a Malaysian town in Selangor during a knife attack while yelling “I hate Malaysia” was identified by the police on Thursday as a student at a local university who was experiencing stress.
A video of the incident on Wednesday morning has spread on social media, showing the 24-year-old woman from China driving a car recklessly before ramming into three motorcycles at a traffic junction and stepping out of the car to attack people at a nearby shopping centre while brandishing a knife.
She is seen in the video being pinned down by bystanders inside a gelato shop where she is heard screaming in Mandarin, saying “this is not fair”, “kill me”, and “I hate Malaysia”.
Kajang district police chief Naazron Abdul Yusof said the suspect was stressed and upset with her experience of studying at a public university in Malaysia, leading her to suffer a breakdown.
“The suspect, however, did not disclose the details of the treatment,” Naazron said. “There is also no record of her taking any medication or suffering from depression.”
Two of her victims are still warded but in a stable condition. She will be held for investigation until August 20.
Many Malaysians have expressed shock over the incident, with some calling for her to be deported back home, while others question the slow police response, saying the nearest police station is less than one kilometre away.
