China Mourns 17 Killed by Tractor Driver

VOA News
2 August 2010

Funerals were held Tuesday for 17 people killed by a drunken tractor driver in Yuanshi county, a rural part of China's northern Hebei province.

Local officials say 38-year-old Li Xianliang went on a killing rampage Sunday after arguing with his supervisor about money while drinking.

Li allegedly killed his boss and later drove an earth-moving vehicle down a village road, tearing through buildings and crushing cars along the way.

The Associated Press said desperate villagers tried to stop the driver by jumping on his vehicle. It said a villager finally managed to stab him.

Li was later subdued and taken into police custody.

The Chinese government has been dealing with a growing number of killing sprees, often committed by men angered about their working conditions or family relations. Some of the victims have included children.

Courts usually hand out death sentences to the perpetrators.

Some information for this report was provided by AP.