Crime
Taiwanese Man, 64 Stabs Couple to Death Over Excessive Noise
A couple were stabbed to death by a Taiwanese man who lived a level below them in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, the grizzly murder allegedly took place in front of the couple’s young children. According to local authorities, the event happened at about 7.50 a.m. on the 14th story of a residential building in the city center .
The suspect only identified as Mr. Wu, entered the flat where the couple lived and attacked them before fleeing the scene with a knife.
The victims’ two sons, ages six and seven, beard witness to the incident but were unharmed. They reportedly walked downstairs to their apartment building’s management office, where they cried, ” Our father and mother have been killed, it was the uncle from the 13th floor,” before a security guard phoned the police.
After an almost eight-hour forensic examination, pathologists revealed that the slain man Mr. Luo, 35, had been stabbed eight times, including a probable fatal injury to his chest while he was in his bed. Ms. Cai, his wife, was discovered in the flat’s main room with five stab wounds, including serious punctures to her abdomen. Both died as a result of significant blood loss.
Mr. Wu, 64, a retired Taiwanese auto mechanic, fled the city on his motorbike but was apprehended less than three hours later. Police said they tracked his escape route on security cameras and apprehended him in Pingtung County, south of Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
While he admitted to the murder right away, prosecutors claimed Wu, 64, was uncooperative and used his right to silence for long periods of time. When attempting to flee the crime scene, he also discarded the weapon and his bloodstained clothes.
He reportedly pushed detectives to “show him the evidence” before allowing him to speak, according to Asia One, indicating little desire to explain his motive for murder or the weapon used.
Suspected squabble over a din
Taiwanese Investigators believe the murder was motivated by a disagreement over noise, with local police stating that Wu’s son had told them about sounds similar to things striking the floor throughout the day.
An employee from the apartment building’s management told Taiwan’s China Times that Wu had made several complaints about noise from upstairs, even when the Luo family was not at home, and that the neighbours routinely quarrelled about it.
The management committee also verified that they have resolved arguments between neighbours more than once, with no physical altercations occurring.
Last Friday, police retrieved an outer shirt Wu was suspected of wearing, as well as a fruit knife believed of being used in the murder, from beneath the Wanda Bridge near the Gaoping River.
On Saturday, Kaohsiung mayor Chen Chi-mai stated that Wu has no history of mental illness. He has been detained while the investigation is underway.
Wu was reportedly caring for his wife, a stroke sufferer with mobility limitations who has stated that she could not understand why he committed the murder.
Mr Luo’s father wrote a statement last Sunday titled “A tearful note from a victim’s father,” in which he stated that he will treat his grandkids as if they were his own children and that he wished to shield them from further damage following the tragic incident.
According to Taiwanese media, the elder boy, a first-year elementary school student, was in tears following the incident. According to authorities, he let Wu into the flat.
However, his younger brother, who is in kindergarten, appeared to be in shock in the aftermath and is claimed to be shunning physical touch from his family.
According to local media, he was also heard commenting that the ketchup that came with the chicken nuggets he was served “looks like blood.”
The Kaohsiung municipal social affairs bureau arranged for Taiwanese psychologists to analyse and assist the boys in dealing with the trauma of seeing the occurrence, as well as a court-trained clinician to assist in taking their statements.
