Motive unclear for N China hospital slayings

The male suspect in a homicide case, which saw seven people killed at an army-affiliated hospital in Hebei province on early Thursday morning, was found to have no conflicts with the victims after an initial investigation, according to Chinese media reports.

The 27-year-old suspect, Li Xiaolong, has been taken into custody after he allegedly chopped six nurses and one janitor to death at the hospital's female dormitory at 3:26 am on Thursday in Beidaihe district, Qinhuangdao city in Hebei, said a Beijing News report.

Another nurse was also wounded in the assault.

Li, a farmers' son from Tangshan in Hebei, is said to be a mental patient who was hospitalized for treatment in 2006, and has no apparent conflicts with the victims, according to local police.

The hospital is a sanatorium, which is affiliated with Chinese PLA's Beijing Military in the region, but the victims and suspect are all contract workers with no affiliation to the army, said a Southern Metropolitan Daily report.

Initial investigations also found that Li, who worked as a cooking assistant in the kitchen, didn't escape after assaulting the victims on 3rd floor of the dorm. He instead returned to his own room on the ground floor.

His motives are unknown and the case remains under investigation.

A resident from Li's native village told Beijing News that Li is a quiet person who didn't speak much and didn't hang out with his peers much growing up.

"He is an introverted person who didn't quite get along with others," the resident told the Beijing Times anonymously.

According to a village cadre familiar with Li's family, in the past six years Li commuted to work from his hometown. The cadre told the Beijing Times that Li only stayed at home and didn't communicate with other people during his commute.

Caixin.com reported on the identities of two of the victims. One of the six nurses killed in the accident was Ma Zheng from the neurology department, she was about to become a bride. Another victim, Ding Xue, was employed by the hospital last year. The rest of the victims have yet to be identified.