Miaoli: An 11-year-old girl who was stabbed during a knife attack in Miaoli City is in stable condition at a hospital’s intensive care unit. She was treated for collapsed lungs and internal bleeding, doctors reported on Friday.
According to Focus Taiwan, the girl, identified by the surname Ting, was stabbed in her left chest and underwent surgery on Thursday night. Following the procedure, her breathing and blood pressure returned to normal, as confirmed by China Medical University Hospital.
The incident also left two others injured, including another 11-year-old girl, surnamed Hsu, who sustained cuts, and a 50-year-old man, surnamed Lin, who was stabbed in the back and abdomen. Lin’s daughter shared on Threads that her father was a bystander who intervened to protect the girls, and he is currently in intensive care at Da Chien General Hospital.
The Miaoli County Police Bureau reported that the attack occurred on Thursday at 3:40 p.m. in front of a convenience store near an elementary school. The suspect, a 48-year-old man named Chiu, was observed loitering in the area before suddenly attacking with knives, according to eyewitnesses.
Chiu was apprehended at his home at 4:35 p.m. after police tracked the scooter he used to escape. Chou Wen-sheng, head of Shangmiao Ward in Miaoli City, described the incident as occurring across from his office. A teacher from a nearby cram school rushed over with the injured Ting, urgently seeking help and exclaiming that Chiu had attacked several people.
The victims, Ting and Hsu, are sixth-grade students from different classes at the same school and were en route to the cram school when they were attacked. Chiu, who was released from an eight-year prison term in March for a previous stabbing incident under the influence of drugs, is currently under investigation to determine the motive for this latest attack and whether he was again under the influence.
While such stabbing incidents are uncommon in Taiwan, the country has seen several similar cases in recent years, including a 2014 Taipei metro attack and a 2024 Taichung train attack. Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the recent incident in Miaoli.
